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Welsh Government Announces £20m Refurbishment of Holyhead Breakwater

23rd October 2023
The longest breakwater in the UK, at Holyhead provides essential protection to the port, allowing ferries to berth and also protects the dock infrastructure. The north Wales port is the second busiest roll on/roll off port in the UK, and is a key transport link between the UK, Ireland and the rest of Europe moving millions of tonnes of goods and transporting thousands of passengers each year.
The longest breakwater in the UK, at Holyhead provides essential protection to the port, allowing ferries to berth and also protects the dock infrastructure. The north Wales port is the second busiest roll on/roll off port in the UK, and is a key transport link between the UK, Ireland and the rest of Europe moving millions of tonnes of goods and transporting thousands of passengers each year. Credit: Jehan Ashmore

At the north Wales ferry port of Holyhead, is where the Victorian era breakwater will undergo a £20m refurbishment to help protect the Anglesey port’s service and in preventing flooding.

Funding for works at the breakwater in Holyhead which took a quarter of a century to complete, was recently announced by the Welsh government.

For around 150 years the breakwater has protected Holyhead from the rigours of Irish Sea storms, but erosion has threatened its stability notably in more recent years.

The breakwater which at 2.39km (1.5 miles) is the longest in the UK, forms part of the port which is owned by the ferry operator Stena Line and where rivals, Irish Ferries also sail to Dublin Port.

It is estimated the total cost for the breakwater is £110m.

During the UK government’s Spring Budget there was a pledge of £20m announced, meaning the budget has doubled with the Welsh government's £20m loan.

Commenting on the financial support, Ian Davies, head of UK port authorities at Stena Line Port Ltd, said: "The Victorians built this fantastic piece of infrastructure, but unfortunately the one piece that was missing was the rock armour protection to give it longevity.

"Over its 150-odd years life it's now been undermined from constant wave erosion and tidal erosion to the point where - structurally the top looks fine - but the rubble mound that it sits on top of has virtually worn away."

The day after the announcement, on Friday saw the First Minister of Wales, Mark Drakeford visit the port as BBC News reports with further coverage.

Published in Ferry
Jehan Ashmore

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Jehan Ashmore

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Jehan Ashmore is a marine correspondent, researcher and photographer, specialising in Irish ports, shipping and the ferry sector serving the UK and directly to mainland Europe. Jehan also occasionally writes a column, 'Maritime' Dalkey for the (Dalkey Community Council Newsletter) in addition to contributing to UK marine periodicals. 

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Ferry & Car Ferry News The ferry industry on the Irish Sea, is just like any other sector of the shipping industry, in that it is made up of a myriad of ship operators, owners, managers, charterers all contributing to providing a network of routes carried out by a variety of ships designed for different albeit similar purposes.

All this ferry activity involves conventional ferry tonnage, 'ro-pax', where the vessel's primary design is to carry more freight capacity rather than passengers. This is in some cases though, is in complete variance to the fast ferry craft where they carry many more passengers and charging a premium.

In reporting the ferry scene, we examine the constantly changing trends of this sector, as rival ferry operators are competing in an intensive environment, battling out for market share following the fallout of the economic crisis. All this has consequences some immediately felt, while at times, the effects can be drawn out over time, leading to the expense of others, through reduced competition or takeover or even face complete removal from the marketplace, as witnessed in recent years.

Arising from these challenging times, there are of course winners and losers, as exemplified in the trend to run high-speed ferry craft only during the peak-season summer months and on shorter distance routes. In addition, where fastcraft had once dominated the ferry scene, during the heady days from the mid-90's onwards, they have been replaced by recent newcomers in the form of the 'fast ferry' and with increased levels of luxury, yet seeming to form as a cost-effective alternative.

Irish Sea Ferry Routes

Irrespective of the type of vessel deployed on Irish Sea routes (between 2-9 hours), it is the ferry companies that keep the wheels of industry moving as freight vehicles literally (roll-on and roll-off) ships coupled with motoring tourists and the humble 'foot' passenger transported 363 days a year.

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A prime example of the necessity for trade in which we consumers often expect daily, though arguably question how it reached our shores, is the delivery of just in time perishable products to fill our supermarket shelves.

A visual manifestation of this is the arrival every morning and evening into our main ports, where a combination of ferries, ro-pax vessels and fast-craft all descend at the same time. In essence this a marine version to our road-based rush hour traffic going in and out along the commuter belts.

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