Menu

Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

Dublin Bay Boating News and Information

Displaying items by tag: New Hybrid ships

23rd July 2021

Brittany Ferries to Introduce New Hybrid Ships for UK-France Routes in 2024/2025

This week Brittany Ferries signed charter contracts (with Stena RoRo, adds Afloat) that will start construction of two new ships, (of Stena's E-Flexer series) one to replace Normandie on Portsmouth-Caen, the other Bretagne on Portsmouth-St Malo offering larger capacity and an increased number of cabins – incl. pet friendly cabins! The new ships, planned to arrive in 2024/2025, can run on liquefied natural gas (LNG), electricity or a combination of both, like a hybrid car. This means that each vessel offers considerable advantages in terms of reducing local emissions and greenhouse gas at sea and during port calls.

Brittany Ferries is to have two new hybrid LNG-electric ships to enter their fleet when they will arrive in 2024/2025 to serve UK-France routes connecting Portsmouth with St Malo and Caen.

As well as significantly cutting emissions, the hybrids will deliver less noise, less vibration for passengers and a step towards future-proofing the company.

  • Like a hybrid car, the ships will run on gas, battery power or a combination of the two
  • Arriving in 2024/2025, they will replace Bretagne (Portsmouth/ St Malo) and Normandie (Portsmouth/Caen), the oldest ships in the fleet
  • Presenting more cabins (including pet-friendlies), greater freight space and higher capacity for passengers in off-season
  • Ready for plug-in shore-side power: To eliminate emissions during port calls

The ships operate on the same principle as a hybrid car. At sea, they will be powered by cleaner LNG (liquefied natural gas) fuel. But in a first on the English Channel, they will also operate partially or completely on battery power– for example when arriving and departing ports.

Furthermore, they will be ready to plug in to shore-side power when this is available in ports. This will allow recharging of onboard batteries and power for systems like air conditioning, heating and lighting while at berth, cutting funnel emissions to zero.

Fleet renewal – a pillar of Brittany Ferries recovery:

The ships will be chartered from Stena RoRo on a ten-year agreement, with a purchase option after four. They will take the place of Normandie and Bretagne, two grandes dames of the fleet. Designed to better serve freight and passenger traffic, they promise more scope to carry tourists to Normandy and Brittany outside of peak holiday periods.

The move is all part of Brittany Ferries’ fleet renewal plan, one of the pillars of its five-year post-Covid recovery strategy. The vessels will follow introduction of Galicia last year, the deployment of Salamanca in 2022 and Santoña in 2023, both of which will be fuelled by LNG ready to serve UK-Spain routes.

“Fleet renewal is not a choice for Brittany Ferries; it is an imperative to secure our future,” said Christophe Mathieu, CEO Brittany Ferries. “Our customers rightly demand cleaner, greener vessels and our port partners expect us to be good neighbours. Furthermore, we will certainly face tighter regulation in the years ahead. The future of our company depends upon our ability to rise to the challenge today, to prepare for tomorrow. That is why I am so proud to announce these new vessels.”

“They bring with them a host of innovations just as Bretagne and Normandie did when they were launched. Both vessels have served us well and we are grateful for the support of the regions that bear their name. They are much loved by customers and crew, but now is the time for us to look to the future and to plan for a brighter future, even as we battle the crisis we face today.”

For passengers and for freight:

Each ship has been carefully designed to suit the route on which it will operate, taking account of future trends in both passenger and freight traffic. To begin with, the garage will be longer and higher which means greater freight capacity. However, they will also be better adapted to new types of passenger vehicle.

This includes the trend towards bigger cars. Today’s Mini for example is 25% longer and wider now than the version on sale when Bretagne was launched. Additional lane space will allow easier access upon boarding and disembarkation, particularly for passengers with mobility problems. The physical size of the garage means they will also be better suited for motorhomes. Meanwhile in-voyage charging will be available for electric car drivers, allowing them to fuel-up en route, ready for their arrival in France.

There will be more cabins too. While Bretagne and Normandie have high (potential) passenger capacities, the reality is that night-time crossings can be limited by cabin availability. Both new ships will therefore come with more cabins, as well as an improved mix of cabin types.

For example, there will be a big increase in top-end commodore cabins. Normandie’s replacement will benefit from 30 more commodores, as well as a C-Club airport-style lounge. Bretagne’s replacement will host 79 more commodores with a C-Club lounge as well as 18 more cabins for families of up to six people.

Both ships will host an increase in pet-friendly cabins, ensuring four-legged travellers are well accommodated too. More details about services on board will be released in the months and years ahead.

How the hybrid system works:

The hybrid ships have two propellors. Each propeller is connected via a prop shaft to a separate gearbox. The gearbox manages power supplied from one LNG engine and to one reversible electric motor. The electric motor is used to either:

Drive the propeller

Charge batteries and/or power onboard systems in port

When driving a propellor, the electric motor is fed by batteries. But it can also be boosted by power from the second LNG engine, configured via the gearbox for the second propellor.

When operating in reverse, the electric motor charges batteries. Depending on charge, the batteries can also be used to power systems on board such as air conditioning, heating and lighting, for example when in ports.

Published in Brittany Ferries
Tagged under
Read more...

Dublin Bay

Dublin Bay on the east coast of Ireland stretches over seven kilometres, from Howth Head on its northern tip to Dalkey Island in the south. It's a place most Dubliners simply take for granted, and one of the capital's least visited places. But there's more going on out there than you'd imagine.

The biggest boating centre is at Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the Bay's south shore that is home to over 1,500 pleasure craft, four waterfront yacht clubs and Ireland's largest marina.

The bay is rather shallow with many sandbanks and rocky outcrops, and was notorious in the past for shipwrecks, especially when the wind was from the east. Until modern times, many ships and their passengers were lost along the treacherous coastline from Howth to Dun Laoghaire, less than a kilometre from shore.

The Bay is a C-shaped inlet of the Irish Sea and is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and 7 km in length to its apex at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south. North Bull Island is situated in the northwest part of the bay, where one of two major inshore sandbanks lie, and features a 5 km long sandy beach, Dollymount Strand, fronting an internationally recognised wildfowl reserve. Many of the rivers of Dublin reach the Irish Sea at Dublin Bay: the River Liffey, with the River Dodder flow received less than 1 km inland, River Tolka, and various smaller rivers and streams.

Dublin Bay FAQs

There are approximately ten beaches and bathing spots around Dublin Bay: Dollymount Strand; Forty Foot Bathing Place; Half Moon bathing spot; Merrion Strand; Bull Wall; Sandycove Beach; Sandymount Strand; Seapoint; Shelley Banks; Sutton, Burrow Beach

There are slipways on the north side of Dublin Bay at Clontarf, Sutton and on the southside at Dun Laoghaire Harbour, and in Dalkey at Coliemore and Bulloch Harbours.

Dublin Bay is administered by a number of Government Departments, three local authorities and several statutory agencies. Dublin Port Company is in charge of navigation on the Bay.

Dublin Bay is approximately 70 sq kilometres or 7,000 hectares. The Bay is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and seven km in length east-west to its peak at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south.

Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the southside of the Bay has an East and West Pier, each one kilometre long; this is one of the largest human-made harbours in the world. There also piers or walls at the entrance to the River Liffey at Dublin city known as the Great North and South Walls. Other harbours on the Bay include Bulloch Harbour and Coliemore Harbours both at Dalkey.

There are two marinas on Dublin Bay. Ireland's largest marina with over 800 berths is on the southern shore at Dun Laoghaire Harbour. The other is at Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club on the River Liffey close to Dublin City.

Car and passenger Ferries operate from Dublin Port to the UK, Isle of Man and France. A passenger ferry operates from Dun Laoghaire Harbour to Howth as well as providing tourist voyages around the bay.

Dublin Bay has two Islands. Bull Island at Clontarf and Dalkey Island on the southern shore of the Bay.

The River Liffey flows through Dublin city and into the Bay. Its tributaries include the River Dodder, the River Poddle and the River Camac.

Dollymount, Burrow and Seapoint beaches

Approximately 1,500 boats from small dinghies to motorboats to ocean-going yachts. The vast majority, over 1,000, are moored at Dun Laoghaire Harbour which is Ireland's boating capital.

In 1981, UNESCO recognised the importance of Dublin Bay by designating North Bull Island as a Biosphere because of its rare and internationally important habitats and species of wildlife. To support sustainable development, UNESCO’s concept of a Biosphere has evolved to include not just areas of ecological value but also the areas around them and the communities that live and work within these areas. There have since been additional international and national designations, covering much of Dublin Bay, to ensure the protection of its water quality and biodiversity. To fulfil these broader management aims for the ecosystem, the Biosphere was expanded in 2015. The Biosphere now covers Dublin Bay, reflecting its significant environmental, economic, cultural and tourism importance, and extends to over 300km² to include the bay, the shore and nearby residential areas.

On the Southside at Dun Laoghaire, there is the National Yacht Club, Royal St. George Yacht Club, Royal Irish Yacht Club and Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club as well as Dublin Bay Sailing Club. In the city centre, there is Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club. On the Northside of Dublin, there is Clontarf Yacht and Boat Club and Sutton Dinghy Club. While not on Dublin Bay, Howth Yacht Club is the major north Dublin Sailing centre.

© Afloat 2020

Dublin Bay Buoy

4WeHelp Movers Cincinnati

Kish Lighthouse

4WeHelp Movers Cincinnati
Afloat Ireland's Sailing and Boating Magazine

Copyright © 2024 Baily Publications Ltd Terms and Conditions

Our site uses cookies. If you're not happy about that please hit your back button.

Web Design & Development by Red Evolution