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Displaying items by tag: Company closes

The ferry operator which serves Rathlin Island off the Antrim coast has ceased trading due to "financial difficulty".

Rathlin Island Ferry Limited which operates between Rathlin Island and Ballycastle Harbour, in a Directors statement expressed "regret" as it announced that its last sailing (today, 11 January) will depart the mainland at 16.00 GMT.

The company using a fast-craft catamaran and car-ferry, added that an insolvency practitioner has been appointed to place the firm into liquidation.

The six-mile route is where RIFL had operated on behalf of the Department for Infrastructure which Afloat adds awarded a contract to Arklow Marine Services to build a car-ferry. The 6 vehicle ferry, Spirit of Rathlin entered service in 2017.

According to a DFI spokesperson, they were notified on Wednesday that the company was to cease trading with immediate effect.

The closure of RIFL follows strike action by ferry workers over pay and conditions which led to sailings cancelled. In addition weeks of engagement were held between the Department for Infrastructure and the ferry operator about the contract and the company's financial position.

The DFI spokesperson also added that it recognised the importance of the ferry service for the local community.

The Island has a population of around 150 residents.

BBC News NI has more details of the company's closure and response from local politicians. 

Published in Ferry

About Pamela Lee, Irish Offshore Sailor

Ireland has produced some of the world’s most dedicated offshore sailors, and Pamela Lee of Greystones is one of them. She has made a name for herself in the sailing world, having worked as a mate on a charter Super-yacht for two and a half years. After coming ashore, she has been fully committed to her offshore sailing ambitions since 2019.

Lee has raced in various craft, including Figaro 3s, Class 40, Tp 52s, and multihulls, and has eight transatlantic crossings under her belt. In partnership with Kenny Rumball, Lee supported Rumball’s La Solitaire du Figaro sailing campaign to secure the Irish berth in the proposed Mixed Offshore Keelboat event for the Paris 2024 Olympics.

One of Lee’s stated main aims is to promote female empowerment in sport, and she set out to establish a double-handed Round Ireland speed record with Englishwoman Cat Hunt in the winter of 2020. This campaign gained much publicity, and Lee expressed pride in bringing sailing and offshore sailing, in particular, into the conversation for 2020.

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