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Displaying items by tag: Impact of Brexit

It is estimated that Brexit has led to a 45% reduction in goods imports coming from the UK to Ireland according to the Economic and Social Research Institute.

As RTE News reports, in its opening statement to the Seanad Brexit Committee, the ERSI sets out the impact of Brexit on Ireland on goods trade.

While imports from the UK are down, the think tank explains that in contrast, there has been "very little reduction observed over the past year" in Irish exports to the UK.

However, some individual sectors have experienced very large falls in exports, such as the food and beverage sector.

The ESRI estimates that Brexit led to a 25% reduction in Irish food exports to the UK and 40% reductions in beverage exports in the first half of 2021.

Imports coming from the UK to Ireland accounted for 33% of Irish imports in 2019, compared to 12% now.

Exports from Ireland to the UK have fallen from 14% to 8%.

For further findings, click here.

Published in Ports & Shipping

The UK Government reports NorthWalesLive, has not considered the impact of Boris Johnson's Brexit plan will have on Holyhead Port, a minister has said.

Michael Gove (who visited the ferryport in August) is the UK Government's Brexit planning minister and he told Welsh Assembly Members that no economic impact assessment had been carried out on how the Prime Minister's plan will impact the port.

In a meeting with the Welsh Assembly's External Affairs Committee, Mr Gove said it was difficult to carry out an assessment on the impact on the UK's second busiest ferryport.

He said: "It’s difficult to have an impact assessment because there are so many variables in play and I always remember the words of the economist JK Galbraith who said that economic forecasting was invented in order to give astrology a good name.”

He argued that Holyhead on Anglesey "will be in a stronger position than ever" if Boris Johnson's new deal is passed by MPs.

A deal has been agreed between the UK and the EU negotiating teams, which experts have said will effectively create a customs border between Great Britain and the island of Ireland.

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Published in Ferry

Shipyards

Afloat will be focusing on news and developments of shipyards with newbuilds taking shape on either slipways and building halls.

The common practice of shipbuilding using modular construction, requires several yards make specific block sections that are towed to a single designated yard and joined together to complete the ship before been launched or floated out.

In addition, outfitting quays is where internal work on electrical and passenger facilities is installed (or upgraded if the ship is already in service). This work may involve newbuilds towed to another specialist yard, before the newbuild is completed as a new ship or of the same class, designed from the shipyard 'in-house' or from a naval architect consultancy. Shipyards also carry out repair and maintenance, overhaul, refit, survey, and conversion, for example, the addition or removal of cabins within a superstructure. All this requires ships to enter graving /dry-docks or floating drydocks, to enable access to the entire vessel out of the water.

Asides from shipbuilding, marine engineering projects such as offshore installations take place and others have diversified in the construction of offshore renewable projects, from wind-turbines and related tower structures. When ships are decommissioned and need to be disposed of, some yards have recycling facilities to segregate materials, though other vessels are run ashore, i.e. 'beached' and broken up there on site. The scrapped metal can be sold and made into other items.