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Displaying items by tag: Irish Competition Authority

Operator Seatruck Ferries announced last week that, subject to regulatory approval from the Irish competition authorities, it is to be acquired from Clipper Group by CLdN.

CLdN, headquartered in Luxembourg is one of Europe’s leading multimodal logistics providers with three divisions CLdN RoRo, CLdN Cargo and CLdN Ports.

Seatruck operates a daily ro-ro (roll on roll off) ferry service from Warrenpoint Port to Heysham, specialising in primarily unaccompanied loads. This model increases efficiency both from an environmental and an operational perspective.

Seatruck, operational since 1996, was acquired by Clipper in 2002. It currently owns eight purpose-built ro-ro vessels of which six are operating on the Irish Sea and two are on charter.

David Holmes, CEO Warrenpoint Port said, “We would like to congratulate the Seatruck team on their acquisition. CLdN is a leading name in the maritime sector, and it is fantastic to now have the brand operational in Warrenpoint. We are delighted to say that for service users, it will be ‘business as usual’. Nothing will change, the Seatruck brand will be retained and the team will continue to be led by Alistair Eagles.”

David continued, “Seatruck has been operational at Warrenpoint Port for 20 years’, providing a vital service for Irish Sea traffic. In more recent years, with increasing costs, the unaccompanied trailer model, has become particularly attractive for haulage companies and logistics providers. We look forward to continuing to drive growth and to building on the strong foundations of our relationship with Seatruck, under their new ownership.”

CLdN and Clipper Group have agreed not to disclose the transaction price.

Afloat.ie adds that Seatruck operate additional Irish Sea routes: Dublin-Heysham and Dublin-Liverpool which are also part of the transaction.  Combined the three routes transport close to 20% of the region’s seaborne cargo volumes.

Published in Ports & Shipping

#PORTS & SHIPPING – Irish Ports are to be reviewed by an in-depth Government Plan to see how funding expansion of the nation's ports can be carried out through the private sector. The Government have ruled-out selling strategic port facilities to fund such projects.

Transport Minister Leo Varadkar said that a study by the Competition Authority into Ireland's ports would also examine whether Dublin Port had an economically dominant position. Minister Varadkar said that "Dublin Port is hugely successful with 40% of our GDP going through it."

He said that "part of our study will look at whether it is profitable because it is dominant or because it is very competitive."

Minister Varadkar said that "Dublin Port is hugely successful with 40% of our GDP going through it" and added "part of our study will look at whether it is profitable because it is dominant or because it is very competitive."

For more on this story as reported by RTE News click HERE.

Published in Ports & Shipping

ESB’s 2040 strategy Driven to Make a Difference: Net Zero by 2040 sets out a clear roadmap for ESB to achieve net zero emissions by 2040. 

ESB will develop and connect renewable energy to decarbonise the electricity system by 2040. ESB will invest in the development of new renewable generation, including onshore and offshore wind and solar, and will significantly increase the amount of renewable generation connected to our electricity networks.

ESB will:

  • Deliver more than a fivefold increase in our renewable generation portfolio to 5,000MW.
  • Reduce carbon intensity of generation fleet from 414 to 140gCO2/kWh by 2030.
  • Decarbonise 63% of our generation output by 2030 and 100% by 2040 (up from c20% now).

Offshore wind

ESB know the importance of offshore wind in tackling climate change and delivering net zero. Ireland has a unique capability given its prime location to take advantage of the potential of offshore wind. ESB are working hard to develop offshore wind projects for the benefit of everyone across society in Ireland and the UK. This includes ongoing engagement with marine users and local communities so ESB can deliver these significant projects.

Offshore wind will play a major role globally in our fight against climate change. It will help to replace energy generated by burning fossil fuels with that from a clean, safe and secure renewable energy source. Ireland’s geographic location on the exposed edge of the Atlantic presents us with a significant opportunity to generate electricity from wind – both offshore and onshore.

Power from onshore wind farms currently provide over one-third of Ireland’s electricity needs. But, whilst its marine area is many times the size of its landmass, Ireland’s offshore wind potential is only starting to be realised. ESB have a coastline stretching over 3,000km but only one operational offshore wind farm – Arklow Bank, with a capacity of 25 MW. In contrast, Belgium’s coastline is only 63km long, but it has already developed more than 2,000 MW of offshore wind. In Great Britain, with a coastline four times the length of ours, offshore wind generation now equates to over 440 Arklow Banks, with an installed capacity of 11,0000 MW as of late 2021.

The Irish Government's target to install 5,000 MW of offshore wind capacity in our maritime area by 2030 is set out in the Climate Action Plan 2021. It also has the objective to source 80% of Ireland’s electricity needs from renewables by the same year. In line with this, ESB is applying its professional and proven engineering expertise to the challenges set within the Climate Action Plan.

ESB are committed to playing a strong role in developing Ireland’s offshore wind potential for the benefit of the people of Ireland. This will be done in consultation with marine users and local communities, and with due care for the marine environment.