Below are some news items from the Irish Sea and surrounding areas that Jehan Ashmore reports on from the shipping scene.
Small 'Sixties' Ship Returns to Dublin
A small short-sea cargoship Saturn (627 gross tonnage) dating to the era of the 'Swinging Sixties' is an increasingly rare breed indeed. The Danish flagged vessel built in 1966 has the lines of a classic 'coaster' and which still plies its trade more than half a century later. The 54m dry-cargoship which called to Dublin Port last week is managed by Nørresundby Rederi & Shipping A/S in Aalborg.
It was on Thursday the diminutive cargoship returned to Dublin Port (having called in February) from Poland from where another heavy transformer at 120 tons was loaded in Szeczin. Discharging operations in the Irish port were handled by the Doyle Shipping Group (DSG) at the joint break-bulk/container terminal in Alexandra Basin.
North and South Ship's Swap Places at Cork Dockyard
Also part of DSG's portfolio of operations is Cork Dockyard (Rushbrooke) near Cobh, which represents the ship-repair and maintenance division of the shipping group which includes ship agencies located at major ports north and south of the border. It was at the southern port's harbour last Tuesday where Northern Ireland research vessel RV Corystes which flies the UK Red Ensign departed the dry-dock for Belfast based owner the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI).
On the next day it was the turn of the dry-cargo combi-trader Huelin Dispatch to enter the graving dry-dock (also in 2017). The Irish flagged merchant ship is a rare breed notably given it is operated by a single Irish ship-owning company, Dundalk Shipping. Currently both ships remain at the dockyard, the Dundalk registered cargoship is docked in the graving dock while the Belfast registered RV Corystes berthed at the facility albeit on the quayside.
Newbuild Ferry Due Back On Irish Sea Route but Not till June
The debut of Stena Line's new leadship ferry of the E-Flexer series Stena Estrid only in January, has since not been all plain sailing as the ropax in early May went off the Dublin-Holyhead route for repairs of its German built engines. Unusually work is taking place at Cairnryan (Loch Ryan Port), Scotland. Taking its roster is relief ropax Stena Nordica which had previously served on the Irish Sea route until Stena Superfast X took over in 2015 but that ferry was in turn displaced by the newbuild.
In the meantime sailings are maintained by the service's second ship Stena Adventurer as also according to the Stena Line freight website, 'Estrid' is scheduled to re-enter service but not until 1st June with the 02.15hrs sailing departing from Dublin Port.
