Seatruck Ferries was a UK-based freight-only ferry company which commenced services in 1996. It became a subsidiary of CLdN and was absorbed into the Luxembourg-based parent's overall brand as CLdN RoRo in February 2024. It operated out of four ports on the Irish Sea, including Heysham and Liverpool.
Seatruck was established in 1996, operating one ship, Riverdance, between Heysham, Lancashire, England and Warrenpoint, County Down, Northern Ireland. She was joined in April 1997 by sister ship Moondance, which was also operated on the Heysham to Warrenpoint service, a service which continues today as a two-ship service.
In 2002, the company was acquired by the Clipper Group. Also in 2002, European Mariner was chartered for two months, before moving on to Color Line.
In 2005, Seatruck Ferries ordered its first new ships, five "P Series" ro-ro freight ferries,[1] however only four were built. These vessels were named Clipper Point, Clipper Panorama, Clipper Pace and Clipper Pennant. All four vessels were built by Spanish shipyard Astilleros de Huelva.
The first of the RoRo 2200 ferries - Seatruck Progress
In 2007, Seatruck chartered the Celtic Star, which was deployed on the Liverpool to Dublin route.
In January 2008, the company's pioneering ship, Riverdance, ran aground in Blackpool.[2] Seatruck chartered Phocine to cover Riverdance's services until Clipper Point entered service. Attempts to refloat the vessel failed, and she was broken up in situ in the summer of 2008.[3] In March 2008, Clipper Point became the company's first new ferry, entering service on the Heysham to Warrenpoint route. Panorama followed in January 2009, Pace in March 2009 and Pennant in October 2009.
In March 2008, the same month that Clipper Point entered service, Seatruck Ferries placed an order for four RoRo 2200 ferries to be built by Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesellschaft in Germany.[4]
The first two of these vessels launched in late 2011, named Seatruck Progress and Seatruck Power, whilst the third, Seatruck Performance, launched in January 2012. The final ship of the class, Seatruck Precision, launched in March 2012. Progress entered service in December 2011, Power joined the fleet in February 2012,[5]Performance joined the fleet in April 2012[6] and lastly Precision will join the fleet before mid-2012.
In late 2011, one of the earlier "P Series" vessels, Clipper Panorama, was renamed Seatruck Panorama whilst Clipper Pace was renamed Seatruck Pace in February 2012.
In 2015, Ole Frie stepped down as chairman of the board. Kristian Morch was appointed as Frie's replacement. Alistair Eagles was also appointed CEO of Seatruck.
In May 2015, Clipper Ranger finished her long-term charter with Caledonian MacBrayne. The Clipper Point also finished her charter with DFDS. She was then chartered to Inter Shipping (Spain) to operate on the company's Algeciras–Tanger Med II route.
In March 2019, both Helliar and Hildasay were sold to Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited for continued use on the Serco NorthLink freight route Aberdeen - Kirkwall - Lerwick.[7]
In December 2019, MV Clipper Ranger was sold to Coopérative de Transport Maritime et Aérien (CTMA) for $11.5 million. This was after being on charter to them since July 2019.[8]
In September 2022, MV Arrow, was sold to Isle of Man Steam packet Company, after being on charter to them for many years.[9] This meant the last of the R Class freight ferries were sold out of Seatruck.
In September 2022, the business was purchased by CLdN of Belgium with eight vessels.[10][11]
At the time of the rebranding to CLdN RoRo, Seatruck owned and operated seven vessels, most of which are in service for Seatruck, with one in service for the parent company, CLdN.
The newest vessel in the Seatruck fleet is Seatruck Precision, which entered service in June 2012.
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, Finland and Sweden. Stena Line is a major unit of Stena AB, itself a part of the Stena Sphere.
NorthLink Ferries is an operator of passenger and vehicle ferries, as well as ferry services, between mainland Scotland and the Northern Isles of Orkney and Shetland. Since July 2012, it has been operated by international services company Serco.
MV Ben-my-Chree is a Ro-Pax vessel which was launched and entered service in 1998. The flagship of the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company, she primarily operates on the Douglas to Heysham route until replaced by MV Manxman in Late 2023.
MS Lady Roz is a ro-ro freight ferry built in 1978. It is a sister ship to Riverdance. She was probably best known for its time at Seatruck Ferries, named Moondance. The vessel was originally built for Emadala Shipping.
MS Seatruck Point is owned and operated by Seatruck Ferries. Built by Spanish shipyard Astilleros de Huelva, Clipper Point entered service on 21 March 2008.
MS Seatruck Pace is a ro-ro freight ferry operated by Seatruck Ferries. Built by Spanish shipyard Astilleros de Huelva, Seatruck Pace entered service In March 2009 on the Liverpool - Dublin route, named Clipper Pace.
MV CTMA Voyaguer 2 is a freight ferry built in 1998, owned and operated by Coopérative de Transport Maritime et Aérien (CTMA) on the Souris to Cap-aux-Meules route.
The European Mariner was a ro-ro freight ferry owned by P&O Irish Sea.
The Phocine is a ferry owned by Dart 3 Ltd and currently in service with Seatruck Ferries.
MS UR is a roll-on/roll-off freight ferry built in 2009 owned by Arab Bridge Maritime. She was owned by Clipper Group and has been chartered to a number of operators.
MS Seatruck Panorama is a ro-ro freight ferry operated by Seatruck Ferries. She operates on the Dublin - Heysham route.
Helliar is a ferry owned by Caledonian Maritime Assets and operated by NorthLink Ferries. Built by Astilleros de Huelva in Spain in 1997 as Lehola for the Estonian Shipping Company she has served a number of owners and operators as RR Triumph and Triumph before her sale to Clipper Group and being renamed Clipper Racer. In 2011, she was chartered to NorthLink Ferries and renamed Helliar.
MS Arrow is a 7,606 GT Ro-Ro ferry built by Astilleros de Huelva SA, Huelva, Spain in 1998 as Varbola for the Estonian Shipping Company, Tallinn. During a charter to Dart Line she was renamed Dart 6, reverting to Varbola when the charter ended. In 2005, she was sold to Malta and renamed RR Arrow. In 2007, she was sold to Seatruck Ferries, Heysham and renamed Arrow. In September 2022, it was revealed that she had been bought by Isle of Man Steam Packet Company for an estimated €9 million.
Hildasay is a 7,606 GT roll-on/roll-off ferry which was built by Astilleros de Huelva, Spain in 1999 as Leili for the Estonian Shipping Company. During a charter to Crowley Maritime she was renamed Port Everglades Express, reverting to Leili when the charter ended. In 2005, she was sold to Greece and renamed RR Shield. In 2008, she was sold to Seatruck Ferries and renamed Shield. In January 2010 she was chartered to NorthLink Ferries and renamed Hildasay.
MV Muirneag is a ro-ro freight ferry, built in 1979 as MV Mercandian Carrier. From 1986 to 2002, she was named MV Belard, serving initially across the Irish Sea. From 2002 to 2013, she was chartered by Caledonian MacBrayne on the Stornoway to Ullapool freight crossing, until she was replaced by Clipper Ranger.
Heysham Port is situated by the village of Heysham, Lancashire, England. The harbour ships mainly roll-on/roll-off freight with one passenger service run by the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company, which operates a twice daily sailing to Isle of Man. There are three freight routes run by Seatruck Ferries and Stena Line which all sail to Ireland daily. The passenger terminal has a rail service which links to Lancaster via Morecambe. Also adjacent to the dock site is a Heysham nuclear power station which was built between 1970 and 1988.
MS Blue Carrier 1 is a ro-ro ferry built in 2000 for Norfolkline BV and now operates in the Aegean Sea for Blue Star Ferries.
MS Seatruck Performance is a ro-ro freight ferry that entered service with Seatruck Ferries April in 2012.
MS Seatruck Precision is a ro-ro freight ferry that entered service with Seatruck Ferries in July 2012.
MV Loch Seaforth is a ferry operated by Caledonian MacBrayne between Stornoway and Ullapool. She was launched on 21 March 2014 and entered service in mid-February 2015, replacing both the former vessel, 1995-built MV Isle of Lewis and a chartered freight vessel.
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