Kerry's Peig Sayers ferry has been a popular mode of transportation for tourists travelling from Dingle Harbour to the Great Blasket Island for more than two decades.

The island ferry is owned by Billy O'Connor, who took over the business from his grandfather and granduncle in 2014. Billy operates the Great Blasket Island Experience, a seasonal tourism enterprise that offers full-day eco-tours from April to October and overnight stays in three cottages on the island. The ferry, a Red Bay Stormforce 11 RIB built in County Antrim, also transports goods from the mainland throughout the year and manages the island's ecosystem during the off-season.

The island ferry is owned by Billy O'Connor, who took over the business from his grandfather and granduncle in 2014

However, the ageing ferry has been causing problems for Billy's business due to frequent engine breakdowns. To address this issue, the Brexit Blue Economy Enterprise Scheme, implemented by Bord Iaschaigh Mhara (BIM), has awarded a grant worth €65,000 for fitting the Peig Sayers with new engines. This investment will make the boat more reliable and improve the overall business. The new engines will give the Peig Sayers a new lease of life, ensuring that Kerry's famous ferry will continue to provide invaluable service throughout the year.

On Saturday, August 26th, Galway Girl Cruises will set sail from Galway Docks, inviting passengers on a cultural journey of discovery, music, and folklore. The tour is operated by 3rd generation seafaring brothers, Tommy and Patrick Connolly, who will be accompanied by a special lineup of musical guests.

The newest boat tour offering on Galway Bay, Galway Girl Cruises, is more than just a sightseeing experience, say the promoters.

It promises passengers an immersive cultural experience, celebrating Ireland's Wild Atlantic Way. From traditional music sessions to engaging maritime stories, every moment onboard offers a glimpse into the heart and soul of Galway.

Patrick Connolly, skipper and traditional boatbuilder, says that the tours are not just about a boat trip but about sharing cultural heritage, stories, and music of their ancestors. He adds, "Our family has always been tied to the sea, and we are honoured to share this legacy and love of the ocean with others."

The Galway Bay Cruise offers breathtaking views of famous landmarks such as Gleninagh Castle, Black Head Lighthouse, Martello towers, and the distant Aran Islands, with live commentary. Passengers will be entertained with vibrant storytelling of Galway coast's maritime misadventures and captivated by traditional Irish music and dance performances by the crew and a host of special guests.

The Connolly brothers have crafted an unforgettable 90-minute experience that resonates with the heartbeat of Ireland, beyond just a cruise. Passengers are promised a journey that's both scenic and deeply cultural, from the raw beauty of the Burren to the majestic Aran Islands on the horizon.

Tommy Connolly says, "Travelling through the water brings a sense of venturing into the unknown. The ever-changing light, wind conditions, and potential wildlife sightings make every journey a new adventure. Be it birds, dolphins, or even whales, there's always something wondrous to see and feel."

The Devane Brothers, Patrick and Gerard, who are 5th generation 'sean-nós' (old-style) dancers and musicians from Connemara, will join the crew on Saturday, August 26th.

Passengers are invited to come aboard, soak in the rugged beauty of Galway's coast, and get ready for a rhythmic and soul-stirring Irish musical treat. Join the crew for some good craic on the Galway Girl Cruises launch. Secure your spot now here. 

Aran Island businessman Tarlach de Blacam has called on Minister for Rural and Community Development Heather Humphreys to withdraw a tender for a new cargo vessel service to Inis Meáin due to the “highly dangerous” nature of the main pier.

As The Sunday Independent reports, de Blacam of Cniotáil Inis Meáin (Inis Meáin Knitting Company) has warned that lives are at risk if the pier at An Córa continues to be used.

Two people died, and there have been several ferry accidents at the pier at An Córa on Inis Meáin since its construction.

Tarlach de Blacam of Inis Meain Photo: Joe O'Shaughnessy

Former Gaeltacht and Islands minister Eamon Ó Cuív (FF) says he supports de Blacam’s call and says an alternative and safer pier, An Caladh Mór, should be completed and used by State-funded ferry services.

Ó Cuiv says Ms Humphreys, who has just published a new ten-year island policy this week, must respond positively to the demand on safety grounds.

A study by consultants Kirk McClure Morton in 2004 commissioned by Galway County Council and funded by the Department of the Gaeltacht stated that the pier at An Córa on Inis Meáin could only provide safe berthage for 70 per cent of the time “in a typical year”.

The 2004 report identified the alternative, An Caladh Mór, as “most suitable for providing safe and reliable access to Inis Meáin by sea”.

Read The Sunday Independent here

A two million euro project to develop a “zero emissions” solution for high-speed passenger ferries is yielding positive results, according to the research team led by Solent University in England.

The group also involving Chartwell Marine and Newcastle Marine Services, aims to develop an electric hydro-foiling high-speed trimaran, which can carry up to 40 passengers on short to medium-range coastal routes.

The project is being funded by Innovate UK, a British government initiative.

Initial testing has demonstrated the potential for a foiling trimaran with low drag and power requirements, according to Giles Barkley, leader of Solent University’s yacht engineering-based degrees.

“A traditional, diesel-powered, 40-passenger catamaran ferry operating at 25 knots typically requires well over 1000kw of power,” Barkley says.

“The trimaran foiling ferry concept has the potential to reach 28 knots using just 250kW of power - equivalent to the power used by two modern electric family cars (2×125Kw motors),” he says.

“This means it is possible to power the craft using zero-emission electric motors, with a significant reduction in associated fuel and operational costs compared to a traditional diesel craft,” he says.

Solent University project lead Dr Laurie Wright, who is associate professor of marine sustainability, says that recent advancements in electrical propulsion technology mean “zero-emission, low-drag, high-speed medium-capacity passenger vessels are now viable”.

"These types of passenger vessels can open “blue corridors”, encouraging a shift from road to alternative transport on otherwise underutilised coastal waterways,” Wright says.

The UK Government is funding the development of new clean maritime technology across a two-year period in 12 regions. It aims to generate highly skilled jobs and position Britain as a “world leader in low carbon maritime”.

Cape Clear Ferries has announced its summer schedule for West Cork, taking in Baltimore, Cape Clear Island, The Fastnet Rock and Schull.

The announcement comes amid considerable excitement at the launch of the newest addition to their fleet – the ‘Carraig Aonair’ (formerly Spirit of Doolin).

The Carrig Aonair is certified to carry 200 passengers to Ireland’s most southerly point. Most importantly, the ferry is weatherproof and built to withstand unpredictable Irish weather conditions.

Just in time for summer, visitors can circumnavigate the iconic Fastnet Rock Lighthouse in the comfortable surrounds of the new ferry – with panoramic 360 views from both inside and out - with large saloon windows to enjoy the view and seating for 100 passengers inside.

The Launch of Cape Clear Ferries’ new-200 passenger fast ferry (the Carraig Aonair). The multi-award-winning ferry service takes in Baltimore, Cape Clear Island, The Fastnet Rock and Schull with panoramic 360 views from both inside and out Photo: Miki Barlok

The tour has also been named among the top tours in Ireland by National Geographic and has topped the bill as an outstanding West Cork Maritime Tourism experience. Fáilte Ireland has also featured footage of one of its ferries rounding the Fastnet Rock in its national and international television ads.

Speaking in relation to the launch of the summer schedule, Karen Cottrell from Cape Clear Ferries said:

“There is always great excitement and anticipation ahead of our regular schedule launches at the beginning of the summer season, but this year we are thrilled to have the option to provide faster and more frequent tours around the famous Fastnet Rock – the tallest and widest rock lighthouse in Ireland and the UK.

“This offers a brilliant backdrop for great family adventures - sailing around the towering rock, savouring its rich history and magnificent location, often seeing whales, dolphins and basking sharks en route.

“Passengers can also visit the picturesque Cape Clear Island and the Queen of Carbery’s Hundred Isles, while those who want to take the tour as the sun sets can avail of our hugely popular twilight tours, which return again this year.

Meanwhile, a sister company, Cork Harbour Cruises, was established to showcase the coastal areas along Cork City, passing Blackrock Castle and on to Cobh, (and recently named ‘Best New Business’ at this year’s Cork Business Association Awards) also continues its scenic harbour tours. Docked at Custom House Quay at the centre of Cork City, it will also welcome passengers on board throughout the summer with corporate packages and twilight tours available.

A fuel leak is believed to have caused a fire on board a passenger ferry linking Ballyhack, Co Wexford with Passage East in Waterford, last year.

A Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB) report says the crew of the Frazer Tintern reacted immediately after the master of the vessel detected a strong smell of diesel fuel while en route to Passage East in early August 2021.

A crew member had also called the master to say he could also detect a strong smell of the fuel and was going to investigate. The incident occurred at around 18.05 hours on August 5th, 2021.

The MCIB report says that when the crew member got to the mesh door at the number one (No.1) engine compartment, he was met with black smoke and flames.

“The crewmember notified the master straight away that they had a fire onboard. The master immediately shut down the No.1 engine and turned off the engine room fans,” it says.

“Two crewmembers then activated two portable fire extinguishers and rigged fire hoses to provide boundary cooling,”it says.

The vessel continued to the Passage East slipway to get passengers off as quickly and safely as possible, it says, although the fire was brought under control.

It says that on arrival, all passengers and vehicles were “disembarked in a safe manner”.

“The vessel was then secured, and the remaining engines shut down. When the smoke dispersed fully, the crew investigated the engine room to confirm the fire had been extinguished,”it says.

The two-deck crewmembers used portable fire extinguishers, the fire was knocked back, and fire hoses were run out to provide boundary cooling while the master continued to navigate the vessel towards Passage East slipway, it says.

The report says that the machinery space fire suppression system was not operated. The vessel was moored up, and the remaining engines were shut down.

“The three crewmembers then carried out a visual inspection of the engine compartment after the remaining smoke had dispersed and confirmed that the fire was fully extinguished,” it says.

The MCIB report says the fire was “most likely caused by a return line fuel leak on No.1 main engine providing fuel to the area”.

It says that the volume and pressure of the fuel was greatly increased by the fuel return line being blocked or shut off, while the ambient high temperature and swirling airflow in the vicinity assisted in the atomisation of the fuel.

It says the fuel may have been ignited by arcing of the No.1 main engine alternator, but it was more likely to have been from fuel spraying onto hot surfaces such as the engine exhaust manifold or turbocharger casing.

It says that shutting down the engine removed the source of fuel from the fire and would have had a far greater effect in extinguishing it than the use of portable extinguishers.

It says that due to the extent of the fire and subsequent damage to No.1 engine, “the exact location and cause of the fuel leak has been impossible to determine”.

It recommends that the owners/operators should ensure that all return line flexible fuel hoses are fixed as per the engine manufacturer’s recommendations.

It also says the owners/operators should arrange to have the airflow from the machinery space ducted away from the main car deck and clear of any public areas. This is to ensure that a fire in the machinery space will not impinge on public areas.

It says the owners/operators should arrange to have the shut-off valves removed from the fuel system return lines to prevent the potential of over-pressurisation of the system. It also recommends that they need to ensure that the firefighting procedures and domestic safety management systems put in place post the incident are “followed and practiced and logged regularly”.

The MCIB reports recommends that the Minister for Transport should issue a marine notice to owners/masters of passenger vessels to remind them that “in the case of a fire or other potentially serious incident a distress/Pan Pan call as appropriate should be made at the earliest opportunity”.

It also says the minister should request a review of manning and crew qualification requirements for Class IV passenger vessels operating in restricted waters as per action 25 of the Maritime Safety Strategy of 2015.

It notes that the owners initiated an internal enquiry into the incident immediately before any repairs were undertaken.

“ This enquiry yielded some useful information on the history of the event”, the MCIB says, but it "did not clearly identify the root cause of the fire".

It says it did lead to the operators adopting a safety management system to improve processes onboard.

It says that since the incident, the door leading to No.1 engine compartment on the ferry was fitted with a weight and magnetic lock so that it closes automatically when the fire alarm is activated.

Doolin Ferry Company has set sail for the summer season, with their state-of-the-art ferries operating once again from Doolin Pier to the Aran Islands. Passengers can also opt to board a Cliffs of Moher cruise, or the Seafari experience, which was introduced in 2021.

With the popularity of the Aran Islands continuing to increase year on year, the family-run business now offers up to 20 sailings per day between Inis Óirr, Inis Mór and Inis Meáin.

As a top destination in the West of Ireland, the Aran Islands offer visitors the chance to step back in time and experience Irish culture in its truest and most traditional forms.

The Doolin Ferry Co. Seafari Launch

Doolin Ferry Co. holds the largest and fastest ferry fleet operating on the Wild Atlantic Way. Doolin Ferry Co’s one of a kind ‘Seafari’ experience takes place onboard an exclusive, private 10 seater rib.

The rib is designed to allow you unrivalled, close up views of the entire Clare Coast while sheltering you from the elements with an optional canopy if the need arises.

Doolin Ferry Co’s private charters allow you to dictate the itinerary so no two journeys onboard are ever the same.

Marking what it described as a “new dawn”, an Antrim company has launched the province’s largest sightseeing passenger ferry.

The new vessel Kintra II marks a £1 million investment by Kintra Boat Tours, and the creation of eight jobs.

The vessel is licensed to carry 84 passengers, and was commissioned in August 2020 from Blyth Catamarans.

It joins Kintra I, the company’s first vessel which provides sightseeing and wildlife tours along the Northern Irish coastline.

Experienced mariner Charles Stewart and business partner Dawn Hynes set up Kintra Boat Tours in March 2020, just as a pandemic took hold. After what Stewart describes as a “choppy start”, the company has benefited from the substantial increase in staycations.

“The North coast is one of the most beautiful parts of the world, and it’s been a long-held ambition to enable locals and tourists to view the incredible wildlife and scenery from sea,” Stewart said.

The vessel was launched on Friday in Ballycastle by the North’s Minister for the Economy, Gordon Lyons and Mayor of the Causeway Coast and Glens councillor Richard Holmes.

“Today marks a milestone for the local economy, our tourism offering and for our company,” Dawn Hynes said.

“ The addition of Kintra II will enable us to create new job roles locally, and also to more than double our capacity, which is especially important for the summer season,” she said.

Kintra Boat Tours sail all year round from Ballycastle along the North coast and Rathlin Island.

The company says its vessel skippers are “incredibly knowledgeable about the geography, history and the wildlife” along the coastline and on the L-shaped island with its puffin colony. All trips also have a wildlife guide onboard.

The Cork County Mayor says the Department of Rural & Community Development has agreed to provide funding for the introduction of a temporary ferry service to Dursey Island to replace the cable car operation which will cease tomorrow for repair work.

Mayor Gillian Coughlan announced today that Cork County Council will undertake a procurement process to provide the ferry service.

"It is the intention of the Council and the Department to put this service in place as soon as possible."

In 2015 Stena Line made history by converting one of the largest RoPax ferries in the world, the 240-metre Stena Germanica, to become the world’s first methanol powered ferry. Now the Swedish ferry company has achieved another world first, by powering Stena Germanica with methanol recycled from residual steel gases.

This week Stena Line took the next step on their sustainable journey towards achieving zero carbon when the Stena Germanica travelled from Sweden to Germany powered by recycled methanol. The new fuel dubbed ‘Blue Methanol’, is recycled from residual steel gases, a by-product of the steel production industry and helps reduce the ferry’s reliance on diesel, thus lowering the vessel’s carbon emissions further.

By making Stena Germanica blue the new fuels helps the vessel become greener! This week’s journey is another milestone in this ground-breaking project, which launched in 2015 when the dual-fuel system onboard Stena Germanica was converted to allow the vessel to run on both methanol and diesel fuel. It is the world’s first methanol powered RoPax (passenger and freight) ferry, which operates on the Gothenburg – Kiel route.

Stena Line developed it with several partners, including Methanex, Wärtsilä and EU's Motorways of the Seas project. The conversion project was the first of its kind in the world and was so unique that it established methanol as a marine fuel for the first time ever.

"It is exciting to be part of our sustainable journey and try out another new sustainable fuel. I can confirm that we sailed with the new fuel from Gothenburg to Kiel on June 22 and it worked very well,” says Peter Holm, Chief Engineer Stena Germanica.

While methanol is a fossil fuel, it is much cleaner than traditional marine fuel. Sulphur and particulates are reduced by 90% and nitrogen by 60%. The steel industry and the maritime sector are two of the world’s biggest emitters of CO2, accounting for 6-8% and 2.5% of all CO2 emissions respectively. The FReSMe project, funded by H2020 EU program, aims to demonstrate the whole process that enables the CO2 captured from the steel industry to produce methanol fuel that will be used as fuel in the ship transportation sector.

“This collaboration between the steel and the maritime sectors is the first of its kind and demonstrates that by working together companies from different backgrounds can greatly improve their effect on the climate. For Stena Line this is another successful proof of concept for our methanol conversion ferry and a further bridge towards our aim of fossil free shipping,” says Erik Lewenhaupt, Head of Sustainability Stena Line Group.