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Irish Ports Stories
Weather Won't Dampen FlightFest On River Liffey This Sunday
#FlightFest - Though the weather forecast isn't looking great for the day, organisers of FlightFest on the River Liffey say the full schedule is proceeding as planned for this Sunday 15 September. The once-in-a-lifetime aviation celebration, in conjunction with The…
Five European Port Heritage Projects Shortlisted for ESPO Award
#HeritagePorts – What do the following five European ports; Antwerp, Cartagena, Dover, Livorno and Olso share in common? The answer is that they have been selected for the shortlist of the European Sea Port Organisation's (ESPO) Award on Societal Integration…
Flight Fest Flyover Above Dublin Port Sees Return of ‘Farewell’ L.E. Emer
#FarewellEMER – This Sunday's spectacular Flight Fest Flyover above Dublin Port and city-centre quays is from where the event is to be officially launched by the LE. Emer (P21), writes Jehan Ashmore. The return to Dublin Port of the sell-listed…
Naval Service Unable to Provide Vessel for Cork Harbour Open Weekend
#corkharbour – Unfortunately, due to operational reasons, the Irish Naval Service are unable to provide a vessel for this weekend's Cork Harbour Open Weekend. L.E.Orla was due to be berthed at the City Quays and open to the public on…
Special Sailing to See Sky Spectacular of Flight Fest Flyover Over Dublin Port
#SeaThePlanes - Dublin Bay Cruises are offering a special sailing up the river Liffey next Sunday (15 Sept.) to view the spectacular Flight Fest flyover of aircraft over Dublin Port, writes Jehan Ashmore. The sailing departs Howth Harbour at 12.30…
Naval Service Represented in New Stamps to Honour Defence Forces 60 Years of Overseas Service
#NavalService - More than 60 years of overseas service by the Defence Forces are to be honoured in a set of stamps launched today. The four-stamp set depicts the four branches of the forces – the Army, Naval Service, Air…
IMDO Shipping Review: Irish Service Sector Growth, Capesize Rates High, Potential Eco-Ships Savings and much more
#Ports&Shipping –The latest IMDO Weekly Shipping Market Review includes the following stories as detailed below. Irish Economy: Service sector growth - Fine summer weather, rising tourist numbers and continued signs of a growth saw Ireland's service sector grow at its…
UK Joint Services Sail-Training Craft Head for Dublin Visit
#AdventureSailing- HMSTC Arctic Express and Discoverer are a pair of UK adventure expedition sail-training craft (STC) for members of the armed forces who are to visit Dublin Port over the weekend, writes Jehan Ashmore. The vessels are operated by the…
Revamped Chartered Irish Ferry Returns to New Zealand Service
#InterIslander- The flagship Interislander ferry Kaitaki has returned to Nez Zealand waters following a $4.5 million face-lift, writes the Dominion Post. As previously reported on Afloat.ie, the charter of the Irish Continental Group 1,650 passenger car ferry Kaitaki had departed…
Seasonal-Only HSS Service Cease Sailings
#StenaHSS – Stena Line's HSS fastcraft operated Dun Laoghaire-Holyhead route ceased sailings last Tuesday on the seasonal-only service, writes Jehan Ashmore. The central Irish Sea corridor route had been running since Easter and operated by the Stena Explorer, the last…
Beaming Lights Locate All Ireland Lighthouse Trail
#LighthouseTrail - As previously reported last week the first ever All Ireland Lighthouse Trail was jointly launched by ministers from north and south at Blackrock Lighthouse, Co. Antrim, one of five lighthouses selected for development along the northern coastline. The…
Cork Harbour Open Weekend 2013 Programme Announced
#CorkHarbour – As previously reported the Cork Harbour Open Weekend (14-15 Sept) programme is packed with lots of activities on offer for all ages and activities for all the family, both on and off the water. Why not try out…
Irish Shipping & Port Activity Rose Up 11% – iShip Index
#shipping – Irish shipping and port activity rose up 11% in the second quarter of 2013 when compared to the corresponding period of 2012, according to the latest quarterly iShip Index and quarterly traffic review published today by the Irish…
Galway Harbour Plans 'Will Put City On Map For 800 Years'
#GalwayDocks - The planned expansion of Galway Harbour will put the City of the Tribes on the map for the next 800 years, according to Galway Harbour Company chair Paul Carey. Galway Bay FM reports on Carey's grand statement made…
Fortunate Sun Joins Bikini Registered Motoryacht to List of Poolbeg Marina Visitors
#MotorYacht – The impressive 177 foot charter motoryacht M.Y. Fortunate Sun is paying a visit to Poolbeg Marina, Dublin Port and as previously reported she called last week to Cork City Marina, writes Jehan Ashmore. Constructed with a steel-hull the…
Spit Bank Lighthouse, Cobh, Cork Harbour Undergoes Maintenance Work
#spitbank – The Spit as it is known locally is one of the most well known and distinguished marks in Cork Harbour and greets every vessel passing between Whitegate and Spike Island heading upwards past Cobh writes Claire Bateman. On passing the…

As an island economy, a healthy maritime sector is key to our national competitiveness. Virtually all our imports and exports pass through Irish ports.

Ireland is dependent on ports and shipping services to transport goods and 90% of our trade is moved though Irish ports. Shipping and maritime transport services make a significant contribution to Ireland’s ocean economy, with the sector generating €2.3 billion in turnover and employing over 5,000 people in 2018.

Ireland’s maritime industry continues to grow and progress each year with Irish ports and shipping companies making significant investments. The ports sector in Ireland is currently undergoing a number of expansions and developments with Dublin Port’s Alexandra Basin development, the development of Ringaskiddy in Cork by Port of Cork and the development of Shannon Foynes Port. Along with these major investments, shipping companies are also investing heavily in new tonnage, with Irish Ferries, CLdN and Stena leading new build programmes.

These pages cover the following sectoral areas: shipowners, harbour authorities, shipbrokers, freight forwarders and contractors, cruise liner operators, port users, seamen, merchants, academic institutions, shipyards and repair facilities, naval architects, navy and defence personnel.

Our pages are covering some of the most notable arrivals around our coast and reporting too on port development and shipping news.

This section of the site deals with Port and Shipping News on our largest ports Dublin Port, Port of Cork, the Shannon Estuary, Galway Harbour and Belfast Lough.

A recent study carried out for the Irish Ports Association (IPA) totalled 75.7 billion during 2004 and their net economic impact was some 5.5 billion supporting around 57, 500 full time employees.

Liam Lacey, Director of the Marine Institute’s Irish Maritime Development Office (IMDO) said, “The Irish maritime industry can look to the future with confidence. It has shown itself to be resilient and agile in responding to challenges. Over the past decade, it has had to respond to the challenges of the financial crisis of 2008, the uncertainty surrounding Brexit and recent challenges. Ireland’s maritime sector has continued to underpin our economy by maintaining vital shipping links for both trade and tourism.”