 | |
| Predecessor | P&O European Ferries |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1998 |
| Defunct | 2010 |
| Fate | rebranded as P&O Ferries |
| Headquarters | Copse Road, Fleetwood (until 2004) , |
Area served | Irish Sea |
| Services | Passenger transportation Freight transportation |
| Owner | P&O Ferries |
| Parent | P&O |
| Website | www.poirishsea.com |
Footnotes /references P&O House Flag | |
P&O Irish Sea was the trading name of P&O Ferries in the Irish Sea from 1998 to 2010, when it was rebranded P&O Ferries.
The P&O Irish Sea brand was formed in 1998 by merging the ferry operations of Pandoro Ltd (who operated freight-orientated routes between England, Scotland and France to Ireland) [1] into P&O European Ferries (Felixstowe) Ltd. The merged company was renamed P&O European Ferries (Irish Sea) Ltd [2] and headquartered in the former head office of Pandoro at Copse Road in Fleetwood. Only the Cairnryan based service of P&O European Ferries (Felixstowe) Ltd transferred to the merged company.
In 1999, P&O Irish Sea announced its intention to purchase two purpose-built Ro-Pax's (roll-on, roll-off, vehicle/passenger) vessels from Mitsubishi of Japan for the Larne - Cairnryan and Liverpool – Dublin routes. This would allow the transfer of the European Leader to the Fleetwood - Larne route and sale of Pride of Rathlin. The new ships would be European Causeway and European Ambassador and were delivered in 2000 and 2001 respectively. An additional ship for the Larne - Cairnryan route was ordered in 2000 and delivered in 2002 as European Highlander.
In 2004, P&O sold its Fleetwood – Larne service to Stena Line. In addition to the service rights, European Leader, European Pioneer and European Seafarer were also sold to the Stena Sphere. At the same time, P&O announced the closure of the Mostyn – Dublin service due to low passenger numbers; this led to the sale of European Ambassador and European Envoy for further service in Europe. Originally the company had also intended to sell the Liverpool - Dublin route to Stena, but this was blocked on competition grounds. [3] In 2005, the company withdrew from the Rosslare – Cherbourg route; this was taken over by a new company, Celtic Link Ferries, who also purchased European Diplomat. [4] In 2014 this route was also taken over by Stena Line.
During 2006, P&O's ferry and port operations were taken over by DP World. In 2010, P&O Irish Sea, which had been run from the parent company's offices in Dover since the withdrawal from Fleetwood in 2004, was rebranded as part of P&O Ferries. [5] Officially the company name remains as P&O European Ferries (Irish Sea) Ltd, however. [2] This rebranding coincided with other changes within the P&O Ferries group of companies such as the closure of the Portsmouth - Bilbao route.
P&O Irish Sea operated many routes across the Irish Sea:
P&O Irish Sea operated a large fleet of vessels during its twelve years in operation.
| Name | Built | In service | Tonnage | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Celtic Star | 1991 | 1999–2003 2008–2010 | 11,086 GT | Returned to owner (chartered) |
| European Ambassador | 2000 | 2000–2004 | 24,206 GT | Sold to Stena Line |
| European Causeway | 2000 | 2000–2010 | 20,646 GT | Continued service with P&O Ferries |
| European Diplomat | 1978 | 2001–2005 | 18,732 GT | Sold to Celtic Link Ferries |
| European Endeavour | 1978 | 1998–2002 | 8,097 GT | Sold to Transeuropa Ferries |
| European Endeavour | 2000 | 2007–2019 | 22,152 GT | Sold to Eckero Line |
| European Envoy | 1979 | 1998–2004 | 6,310 GT | Sold to Kystlink |
| European Highlander | 2002 | 2002–2010 | 20,464 GT | Continued service with P&O Ferries |
| European Leader | 1975 | 1998–2004 | 12,879 GT | Sold to Stena Line |
| European Mariner | 1978 | 1998–2010 | 1,598 GT | Broken up in 2011 |
| European Navigator | 1976 | 1998–2002 | 3,809 GT | Sold to AB Maritime |
| European Pathfinder | 1976 | 1998–2002 | 3,335 GT | Sold to Transeuropa Ferries |
| European Pioneer | 1975 | 1998–2004 | 10,957 GT | Sold to Stena Line |
| European Seafarer | 1975 | 1998–2004 | 10,957 GT | Sold to Stena Line |
| Express | 1998 | 2005–2010 | 5,902 GT | Continued service with P&O Ferries |
| Jetliner | 1996 | 1998–2000 | 4,675 GT | Returned to owner (chartered) |
| Norbank | 1994 | 2002–2010 | 17,464 GT | Continued service with P&O Ferries |
| Norbay | 1993 | 2002–2010 | 17,654 GT | Continued service with P&O Ferries |
| Norcape | 1979 | 2010–2010 | 14,087 GT | Continued service with P&O Ferries |
| Pride of Rathlin | 1973 | 1998–2000 | 12,503 GT | Sold to Indonesian ferry operator |
| RR Triumph | 1997 | 2006–2007 | 7,606 GT | Returned to owner (chartered) |
| Superstar Express | 1998 | 2000–2004 | 5,517 GT | Returned to owner (chartered) |
Stena Line is a Swedish shipping line company and one of the largest ferry operators in the world. It services Denmark, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latvia, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland and Sweden. Stena Line is a major unit of Stena AB, itself a part of the Stena Sphere.
Rosslare Europort is a modern seaport located at Rosslare Harbour in County Wexford, Ireland, near the southeasternmost point of the island of Ireland. The port is the premier Irish port serving the European Continent with 36 direct services to the Continent weekly. It handles passenger and freight ferries to and from Cherbourg, Dunkirk and St Malo/Roscoff, in France, Bilbao in Spain and Fishguard and Pembroke Dock in the United Kingdom. Since July 2022, a new freight route between Rosslare and Zeebrugge, Belgium was introduced by Finnlines for a twice weekly ro-ro service between the two ports.
Irish Ferries is an Irish ferry and transport company that operates passenger and freight services on routes between Ireland, Britain and Continental Europe, including Dublin Port–Holyhead; Rosslare Europort to Pembroke as well as Dublin Port-Cherbourg in France.
P&O was a British shipping and logistics company dating from the early 19th century. Formerly a public company, it was sold to DP World in March 2006 for £3.9 billion. DP World currently operate several P&O branded businesses, P&O Ferries, Istithmar P&O Estates, and P&O Maritime Logistics. It also operates P&O Heritage, which is the official historic archive and collection of P&O.
Cairnryan is a village in the historical county of Wigtownshire, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It lies on the eastern shore of Loch Ryan, six miles north of Stranraer and 81 miles (130 km) southwest of Glasgow.
Belfast Lanyon Place is a railway station serving the city of Belfast in Northern Ireland. Located on Bridge Street in the Laganside area of central Belfast, it is one of four stations in the city centre, the others being Great Victoria Street, City Hospital and Botanic. Lanyon Place is the northern terminus of the cross-border Enterprise service to Dublin Connolly. It is also served by Northern Ireland Railways, which operates routes to other locations in Northern Ireland, including Derry, Bangor, Portadown and Larne.
P&O Ferries is a British shipping company that operates ferries from United Kingdom to Ireland, and to Continental Europe. The company was created in 2002 through mergers and acquisitions within P&O. It has been owned by Dubai-based DP World since 2019.
P&O European Ferries, a division of P&O Ferries, was a ferry company which operated in the English Channel from 1987 after the Herald of Free Enterprise disaster, when Townsend Thoresen was renamed P&O European Ferries, until 1999 when the Portsmouth Operations became P&O Portsmouth and the Dover Operations were merged with Stena Line AB to make P&O Stena Line.
SeaCat was the marketing name used by Sea Containers Ferries Scotland for its services between Northern Ireland, Scotland and England between 1992 and 2004. The company was originally based in Stranraer later moving to Belfast. The name originates from the use of high-speed catamaran ferries.
The HSC Superexpress is a 91-metre (299 ft) wave piercing catamaran built by Incat, owned by Golden Star Ferries and chartered to Viking Line. During her delivery voyage on 9 June 1998, as Catalonia, she set the record for the fastest Atlantic Eastbound Record, previously held by another Incat craft Hoverspeed Great Britain. She made the 3,125 mi (5,029 km) run from Manhattan, US to Tarifa, Spain in 3 days 7 hours 54 minutes, traveling at an average speed of 38.877 knots.
The European Mariner was a ro-ro freight ferry owned by P&O Irish Sea.
The Via Mare is a ro-pax ship which is owned and operated by Baltic Scandinavian Lines.
Stena Nordica is a ro-pax ferry owned and operated by Stena Line.
MS Anna Marine was a ro-ro ferry that operated on the Stena Line service from Larne, Northern Ireland to Fleetwood, England.
MS ANT 1 was a ro-ro ferry operated by Stena Line between Larne, Northern Ireland and Fleetwood, England. The ferry did not carry passengers, insteading solely carrying freight.
MS Stena Seafarer was a ro-ro ferry that operated on the service between Larne, Northern Ireland and Fleetwood, England.
The MV European Causeway is a ferry operated by P&O Ferries. She was built at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Shimonoseki shipyard in Japan.
Celtic Link Ferries was an Irish ferry company which used to operate a passenger and freight roll-on/roll-off service between Rosslare and Cherbourg. Celtic Link Ferries ceased operating in February 2014 with Stena Line taking over their route.
MS Envoy was an Iceclass III Ro-Ro Passenger Ferry vessel.
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