Menu

Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

Shannon Estuary and River
Record port levels: Bulkers berthed at the Foynes Port, the main port of six terminals operated by SFPC on the Shannon Estuary
Ireland's deepest sheltered commercial harbour, Shannon Foynes Port Company (SFPC) has reported another very strong year in 2021, with record earnings achieved for the year and profit before taxation exceeding €5.2 million for the first time. The performance was down…
Multi-purpose gaff cutter. The design of the 25ft Shannon Hooker Sally
O'Keeffe was developed from the Estuary's traditional cargo-carrying
craft, and now she carries a human cargo of enthusiasts keen to learn
more of the sea and sailing
Sally O'Keeffe, the 25ft re-interpretation of the Shannon Estuary's traditional sail-driven cargo-carrying cutters which could usefully find their way into the smallest ports along both sides of the majestic waterway, is this year celebrating ten years of quietly useful service…
Fergus Kelliher’s J24 Jibe from Tralee Bay Sailing Club
The final day of racing in the WIORA West Coast Championships in Kilrush, Principal Race Officer, John Leech, postponed the start of racing by one hour to allow a front to pass through. When racing did get underway on the…
The J24 sinking at WIORA regatta on the Shannon Estuary at Kilrush. The three mark boats on the water were quickly on the scene to take the crew of the yacht on board the safety boat and quickly brought them ashore all in good spirits. Efforts was made to recover the boat but unfortunately, the boat later sank; all relevant authorities were informed, according to an event spokesperson
There has been a dramatic start to the WIORA Championships at Kilrush on the Shannon Estuary with one boat sinking and the second day of racing cancelled due to strong winds. This year has a bumper numbers of entries for the…
Shannon Foynes Port Company (SFPC) has signed a memorandum with a world industry leader in the renewable wind energy project. The signing with Norwegian Offshore Wind, took place at the Foynes Yacht Club which neighbours the mid-Shannon port located in Co. Limerick.
Shannon Foynes Port Company has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Norwegian Offshore Wind to provide a framework for collaboration on future projects. Norwegian Offshore Wind is a cluster of 350 companies that cover the entire supply chain for…
Dinghy sailing at the Royal Western Yacht Club's Splash & Sail day on the Shannon Estuary
The Royal Western Yacht Club of Ireland at Kilrush on the Shannon Estuary opened its sailing season with a ‘Splash & Sail’ day of celebration to launch the dinghy sailing fleet and club kayaks. The event was attended by many…
Gentle start to a great voyage – Saoirse getting under way in Dun Laoghaire on June 20th 1923
Barry Keane and Tony Doherty of Mountaineering Ireland have formally proposed that commemorative postage stamps be issued to celebrate the up-coming Centenary of Conor O’Brien’s pioneering voyage round the world south of the Great Capes with his Irish-built 42ft ketch…
Shannon Foynes Port Company (L-R) Ronan Keane, Construction Director NIARON, John Carlton, Engineering and Port Services Manager Shannon Foynes Port Company, Francis Cleary, Contracts Manager NIARON and Niall Keane, Health Safety Environmental Quality Manager NIARON.
A record €28million investment in jetty infrastructure and a port logistics park has been announced by Shannon Foynes Port Company today in a significant step in transitioning the Shannon Estuary into a major international renewable energy supply-chain hub. The unprecedented…
The Russian-flagged general cargo vessel, Pola Anatolia
The Russian-flagged general cargo vessel, Pola Anatolia, has arrived at Foynes Port in County Limerick after a seven-day voyage from Kaliningrad. The Baltic port of Kaliningrad is the only ice-free port of Russia. It is home to the headquarters of…
Taskforce Boost to Shannon Estuary as terms of reference agreed for new group. Above the Shannon ferry which connects counties Limerick and Clare.
A new group charged with changing the face of the Shannon Estuary has seen its terms of reference published this week. Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Leo Varadkar TD has published the details for the Shannon Estuary…
Steve Morris at the centre of the skiff-building group in Kilrush. Pandemic mask precautions are a good idea in any case when you’re using epoxy resins
Kilrush may be best known internationally these days as the place where the Dublin Bay 21 fleet - originally from 1902 - is being re-born through the developing skills of the Steve Morris-led boat-building team in the south Clare harbour…
Cruiser racing on the Shannon Estuary
The Notice of Race and Entry Form for June's West Coast of Ireland (WIORA) Championship being hosted by the Royal Western Yacht Club of Ireland has been published. This year will see a change to the usual format as the…
The Ilen in Greenland in 2019 (left), and her route to London (right) in 2022, planned for late April.
The last timber-built sailing trading ship in Ireland, the 56ft Ilen, will set off from the river port of Limerick on the Shannon in April, bound for the great river city of London on the Thames in England writes Gary…
An Cósta Thiar - a new TG4 Maritime TV series
The "culture, challenges and benefits" of living on the Atlantic seaboard are explored in a new TG4 Maritime TV series broadcast from this week. Áine Ní Bhreisleáin, presenter of Bladhaire on Raidió na Gaeltachta and co-presenter of Beo ar Éigean…
Competitors at Foynes Yacht Club's SRL Frostbite Open Dinghy Series on the Shannon Estuary
There was great excitement at Foynes Yacht Club on the Shannon Estuary for the return of their SRL Frostbite Open Dinghy Series, after a two-year hiatus writes FYC Dinghy Class Captain, Mary McCormack Six races were held over four weekends. Conditions…
Kilrush RNLI lifeboat operations manager Shawna Johnson with the station’s inshore lifeboat
Nine months into her role as lifeboat operations manager at Kilrush RNLI, Shawna Johnson is preparing for her first Christmas on call since taking up the management of the Co Clare lifeboat station. As the charity launches its Christmas appeal,…

Shannon Foynes Port Information

Shannon Foynes Port (SFPC) are investing in an unprecedented expansion at its general cargo terminal, Foynes, adding over two-thirds the size of its existing area. In the latest phase of a €64 million investment programme, SFPC is investing over €20 million in enabling works alone to convert 83 acres on the east side of the existing port into a landbank for marine-related industry, port-centric logistics and associated infrastructure. The project, which will be developed on a phased basis over the next five years, will require the biggest infrastructure works programme ever undertaken at the port, with the entire 83 acre landbank having to be raised by 4.4 metres. The programme will also require the provision of new internal roads and multiple bridge access as well as roundabout access.