The Chinese shipyard has completed another stage of delivering the brand-new ferry named Stena Edda, which, once commissioned, will enter service on the Belfast-Liverpool route in spring 2020.

The last in a series of three will join her sister ships in 2021. All will be 215 m-long ro-paxes capable of taking on-board up to 1,000 passengers while offering 3,100 lane metres of cargo capacity. Thanks to the newbuilds, the capacity of the Belfast-Liverpool service will increase by around 20%.

"Stena Edda will deliver many benefits to our freight and travel customers including faster and easier loading/unloading with drive through decks and new port infrastructures. Our latest design in cabins and further enhancement of our Scandinavian inspired interiors will make these new ships the largest, most spacious and most comfortable ever to sail between Belfast and Liverpool," Paul Grant, Trade Director, Irish Sea North, Stena Line, commented.

In addition to the three vessels bound for the Irish Sea, Stena Line has also ordered a further two ferries of the E-Flexer design, but which will be longer (240 m), hence offer more room for passengers (1,200) as well as cargo (3,600 lm). The two are planned to be deployed within Stena Line's network in 2022.

Niclas Mårtensson, CEO, Stena Line, commented in this regard, "It's very exciting to follow the building process and this is another very important milestone in our rolling construction programme. This investment underscores our commitment to our operations on the Irish Sea and our determination to deliver the best possible freight and travel experience for our customers. This is a very exciting time for our business and I'm proud that as Europe's largest ferry company, Stena Line continues help shape the industry for the next generation of freight and leisure passengers."

Photo: Stena Line