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IRISH
CONTINENTAL GROUP HISTORY
1968-2001
Origins
The
Irish Continental Group story has its origins on May 17, 1968 when the first
direct Rosslare-Le Havre car ferry sailing took place.
This first venture, of one round-trip sailing per week, was a joint Anglo-French
operation provided by Normandy Ferries, part of P&O group, in partnership
with French shipping line Saga, owned by the Rothschild family. Both contributed
a ship to the service - the Dragon and Leopard, the vessel which commenced the
service.
In its first season, the new service carried 31,000 passengers. In its second
season, 1969, sailings were increased to two per week between mid-June and
mid-August. Public reaction was enthusiastic with the result that 1969 passenger
carryings more than doubled to 68,000. The Dragon and Leopard continued to
operate during the 1970 and 1971 seasons with two sailings per week in peak
season.
First
service ends
Just
as the service was maturing, it came to an abrupt end. When the Dragon left
Rosslare to complete its 1971 schedule, it had visited the port for the last
time. This arose from the fact that Normandy Ferries, in planning their 1972
schedule, found that they required the Dragon and Leopard exclusively on their
English Channel services in order to retain their competitive position. So, at
very short notice, they were withdrawn from the Rosslare-Le Havre route.
Search
to replace the service
Given
the short notice, it was impossible to charter suitable replacement ships for
the route with the result that 1972 came and went with no Ireland-France
service.
But behind the scenes, frantic efforts were being made to re-establish the
service on a sounder footing, one which would have its commercial roots in
Ireland. So, in 1972, the then Government requested B&I Line and Irish
Shipping to consider the possibility of re-opening the service, a request
answered by Irish Shipping.
Irish
Shipping takes up the challenge
Irish
Shipping, which took up the challenge, had a fascinating history in its own
right. In 1940, the first full year
of World War II, the Irish Government led by Taoiseach Eamonn De Valera, was
experiencing difficulty chartering ships to bring essential supplies to Ireland.
A decision was taken to establish Irish Shipping as the national shipping line.
Irish Shipping began operations in March 1941 and, by the end of that year, had
performed an heroic service transporting essential supplies into Ireland
utilising ships which had been chartered for this purpose.
After the war in 1945, the company began to return its chartered vessels and, by
1948, had begun to acquire its own, newly-built fleet. By 1972, when the
decision was made to re-start the Rosslare-Le Havre service, Irish Shipping was
a substantial shipping company with 31 years service.
Irish
Continental Line formed
To
put their plan into operation, a new company, Irish Continental Line, was
established by Irish Shipping in partnership with other Irish and Scandinavian
interests. In it Irish Shipping held a 30% shareholding, Lion Ferry of Sweden
and a Norwegian shipping company Fernley and Egar held 25% each, while Aerlod
Teo, a subsidiary of CIE, held the remaining 20%.
A
new car ferry vessel with 547 berths and space for 210 cars, which was then
under construction for Lion Ferry was purchased for the Rosslare-Le Havre
service. On January 17th, 1972, the ship was given the name St. Patrick and
launched at the shipyard of Schichau Unterweser in Bremerhaven, Germany.
Rosslare
Harbour - Ireland’s Europort
CIE’s
interest in joining Irish Continental Line stemmed from their ownership of
Rosslare Harbour. Now Ireland’s major Europort and passenger ferry terminal,
the history of Rosslare Harbour dates back to the late 1870’s when work began
on constructing the pier and connecting railway line.
The first regular shipping service
from Rosslare began in 1896 with a regular run to Bristol and Liverpool. Soon,
regular sailings began with other vessels, with services linked into railway
timetables in Ireland and Britain.
The two World Wars brought inevitable interruptions to services out of Rosslare.
During World War II, shipping services in and out of the port were spasmodic and
did nor resume on a regular basis until 1946.
For the people of Rosslare, May 31st, 1973, was a day that marked a turning
point in the area’s fortunes. On that day, Irish Continental Line’s St.
Patrick arrived for the first time, flying the Irish flag. Immediately, it began
regular scheduled sailings to France, beginning with three round trips per week
increasing to every second day in each direction during July and August. The new
service operated until end-December 1973. Thereafter, it became an all year
round operation.
Motoring
Holidays - a popular concept
With
a financially stable ferry operation and a comfortable modern ship, the concept
of motoring holidays to France
became popular among Irish holidaymakers. This was matched by an equal interest
in Ireland among Continentals, particularly French, Germans and Dutch.
For hauliers, too, the advantages of direct sailings to France were very
beneficial and the new service soon flourished.
By this time, Irish Continental
Line had also begun to develop the package holiday business to France. In 1976 a
subsidiary company, Ferrytours, was established to promote inclusive holidays to
France based at Irish Continental Line’s reservations and administrative
centre at Aston Quay, Dublin.
Three years after the new service was started , the Scandinavian involvement in
Irish Continental Line was drawing to a close. In 1977, Irish Shipping bought
out the Lion Ferry and Fernley and Egar shareholdings to become 80% owners of
the company. CIE continued to hold the balance. In 1977, Irish control was
further consolidated when ownership of the St. Patrick transferred from Irish
Shipping to Irish Continental Line. This was a far-sighted move that was to
prove itself during the liquidation of Irish Shipping in the mid-1980’s.
St.
Killian enters service/Rosslare-Cherbourg route opened
After
the transfer of the Saint Patrick to Irish Continental Line ownership, a
decision was made to purchase a second vessel, the St. Killian. Built in 1973 in
Yugoslavia for the Swedish Stena Line, she was purchased and put into service
between Ireland and France in 1978.
Belfast-Liverpool
service begin
Once
the company sailed past the difficulties of the 1970’s, it was able to plan
ahead. Two fundamental decisions were made - to commence a Belfast-Liverpool car
ferry service and to ‘jumboise’ the St. Killian.
The Belfast-Liverpool service had been in operation for over 100 years. After
the withdrawal of the previous operator, Irish Continental Line decided to take
over the route, restarting it as Belfast Car Ferries on May 1, 1982. The St.
Patrick, which started the Rosslare-Le Havre run in 1973, was transferred to the
Belfast-Liverpool service and renamed St. Colum I.
In the early years, the outlook for
the Belfast-Liverpool service was promising. In 1984, for instance, the Saint
Colum I made 350 voyages, carried 208,000 passengers, 46,056 cars and 7,108
freight units. A total of 19,000 trade cars were also carried, a quarter of all
the trade cars imported into Northern Ireland that year.
But gradually, the economics of the
service disimproved. In the face of competition from other routes, and with no
hope of improvement, the service was finally closed down in October, 1990 and
the ship sold to Greek owners.
St.
Killian jumboised
While
the Belfast media were excited by the news of the reopening of the
Belfast-Liverpool service in 1982, the Dublin media became even more
enthusiastic about another event.
In an Amsterdam shipyard work began to ‘jumboise’ the Saint Killian by
cutting it in two and adding a new 32 metre mid section at a cost of £7.5
million.
The job, which took just three months to complete, added enormously to the
overall carrying capacity of the St. Killian. Berths were increased from 800 to
1,400, while car spaces went up from 20 to 300. The ship was renamed the St.
Killian II and returned to service.
New
ship for Ireland-France service
To
replace the St. Patrick on the Ireland-France route, Irish Continental Line
purchased an additional vessel named Aurella which was owned by the SF Line
sailing under the Finnish flag. Purchased at a cost of $16.5 million, she was
refitted in Amsterdam and renamed St. Patrick II before joining St. Killian II
on the Ireland-France service.
Financial
restructuring
The
end of 1982 saw the company financially restructured through the sale of Irish
Continental Line to a new company called Oceanbank Developments, in which Irish
Shipping had a 75% stake with Allied Irish Bank holding 25%.
Cork-Le
Havre service begins
In
1983, a third Summer service came into operation from Ireland to France on the
Cork-Le Havre route, with sailings from end-June to end-August.
This new route proved popular with Irish holidaymakers and with French and other
Continental visitors wishing to arrive closer to their holiday destinations in
Counties Cork and Kerry.
Rosslare
Ship Repairs formed
Another
step forward came in 1983 with the opening of Rosslare Ship Repairs, formed to
carry out repairs and maintenance on Irish Continental vessels and ships of
other lines.
Irish
Shipping enters stormy waters
While
Irish Continental Line was making a steady rate of knots, with year on year
improvements in traffic and revenues, dark storms were brewing, unknown to
anyone connected to the line. In 1979 and 1980 a series of charter deals for
Irish Shipping vessels was arranged in Hong Kong, commitments that were
considered financially ruinous for the company.
Irish Shipping was trading against a dismal world economic background, which
made freight carrying an unprofitable proposition. When the then Government
decided to put Irish Shipping into liquidation towards the end of 1984, there
was a public outcry with calls that Ireland was being deprived of a
strategically important deep sea fleet, one that had proved its worth for over
40 years, in conditions of war and peace. Despite these calls, the Government
proceeded with the liquidation of Irish Shipping which became effective in
November 1984.
This immediately placed Irish Continental Line management in a quandary - their
company which had a successful, profitable trading record, but which was largely
owned by Irish shipping, had now become part of the liquidation process. Despite
this, the company continued to trade as a going concern with the Irish Shipping
liquidation having little practical effect.
For two and a half years, Irish Continental Line carried on in a state of
uncertainty, an interregnum between ownership.
New
ownership
Finding
a buyer for what was a financially sound operation proved slow and frustrating
with legalities over title and other matters having to be resolved.
It was not until Christmas 1985 that advertisements appeared in the national
press inviting purchase offers. The scramble to settle the ownership of the
company was only just beginning.
In January 1986 the bidding was led by B&I Line which put a valuation of £7
million on Irish Continental Line. In all, 24 potential bidders emerged,
including a consortium of freight companies. During the course of 1986 two bids
materialised from groups within the management of Irish Continental Line itself.
Complex taxation matters concerning the ownership of the two vessels used on the
Rosslare-France routes were another complication which had to be resolved. In
November 1986 sole ownership of the two Irish Continental Line vessels was
acquired, a move which cleared the way for the completion of the sale which took
place in March 1987 when a consortium of institutional investors was successful
in its bid for the company.
New
look - New future
For
Irish Continental Group, as the new holding company was now known, 1987 was to
be one of the most exciting in the 19 years history of the Ireland-France ferry
service. Under new ownership, a big revamp began.
Irish Ferries and Belfast Ferries (then in operation) were the new operating
divisions. The Board of Directors was restructured, a new Managing Director was
recruited, and steps were taken to revitalise the company.
APEX fares and other incentives were introduced to give customers the benefit of
discounts for early bookings. Freight customers were given a new, more
competitive tariff structure. New quality standards were introduced throughout
the company and the ships were refurbished to become ‘floating hotels’.
Much organisational change took place internally, and outwardly there came a
change of image. A new corporate identity and logotype were introduced with
strong new colour themes and a shamrock motif which featured prominently. This
new design style was carried through in all the company’s promotional
literature and advertising.
Stock
Exchange debut
The
group had slightly belated success with its Stock Exchange debut. Originally, it
had been planned to launch the company’s shares on the Smaller Companies’
Market of the Stock Exchange in the Autumn of 1987, but the timing was hardly
propitious.
On October 19th 1987, world stock
markets plummeted, in what became known as ‘Black Monday’. The Irish
Continental Group share launch was deferred, until February 19th 1988, when a
total of £2.7 million was raised. The first day of dealings was on April 6th
1988.
About 80% of the company’s staff
subscribed to the issue with the result that a significant proportion of the
group’s shares are now held by the employees.
Trading improved with 1988 turnover up to £34 million and pre-tax profits at £823,000.
With the new structure in place, the line was moving in the right direction. Two
shore-based changes reflected this direction. The sales headquarters of the
company was moved to Merrion Row. Reservations procedures were fully
computerised with on-line connections to travel agents and sales offices abroad.
Within a short period, the fruits of re-organisation were being felt. For the
year to October 31st 1989, its first as a publicly quoted company, Irish
Continental Group reported a turnover of £35.63 million and a pre-tax profit of
£1.5 million, a 31% increase on the previous year.
Eurocar
Shipping
In
1989, the company went to the market again, raising £1,332,000 under the
Business Expansion Scheme. Marine investments of Luxembourg took a 20.7% stake.
1989 also saw the company make a successful diversification move when it
acquired a 50% stake in Eurocar Shipping, which operates two roll-on/roll-off
freight vessels for the transport of fully built up cars. The Group subsequently
withdrew from this involvement and the investment was written off in the the
Group’s 1991 accounts. Another development saw Irish Continental Group acquire
100% ownership of Rosslare Ship Repairs.
1990
- A new decade of growth begins
Come
1990, Irish Continental Group recorded turnover up 12% to just over £40
million, with pre-tax profits up 60% to £2.4 million. Passenger numbers also
increased by 13% over the previous year, from 285,000 to 324,000 with the
strongest growth coming from mainland Europe where traffic increased by 22%.
From November to March each year, freight is the important source of revenue
with 90% of loads accounted for by roll-on/roll-off freight vehicles, the
remaining 10% coming from trade car imports from France and other mainland
European car manufacturers. To ensure that hauliers get a year-round freight
service, freight-only vessels have been chartered during the Summer to augment
the passenger fleet when they are heavily loaded with tourist traffic.
Quality
counts
During
1990, a total of £1 million was spent refurbishing and improving the two Irish
Ferries ships. Also in 1991, a ‘Quality Counts’ programme was launched to
promote awareness among staff of the need for first class quality control.
In 1990, Irish Continental Group also won an award given by the Ireland France
Chamber of Commerce to the organisation which has done most to promote
Irish-French trade.
B&I
Line Acquired
In
early 1991, Irish Continental Group reached conditional heads of agreement to
purchase the share capital of the B&I Line and in early 1992 a major
milestone was passed when it was formally announced that Irish Continental Group
had acquired outright ownership of B&I Line following almost two years of
talks on the purchase of the Line from the Irish Government.
The acquisition immediately enhanced the status of Irish Continental Group and
positioned the company as Ireland’s leading Irish passenger car ferry and
freight shipping enterprise with an extensive range of services to France,
United Kingdom, Belgium and Holland.
In that year also, a new Managing Director joined Irish Continental Group and a
new management structure was put in place at B&I Line. A series of
presentations were made to all employees in which plans for the development of
the enlarged group were announced.
Group
Restructured - B&I Line Superferry ‘Isle of Innisfree’ Introduced
In
1992, following the acquisition of B&I Line, the enlarged Irish Continental
Group is re-structured into three divisions:
Ferry Services; European Container Service; and Dublin Ferryport
Terminals. Frank Carey is appointed Group Marketing Director; Alex Mullin to
Group Operations Director. Along with Managing Director Eamonn Rothwell, and
Finance Director Gearoid O’Dea, they form the senior management group.
Major investment is made by acquiring the superferry Isle of Innisfree to
replace the Munster on B&I Line’s Rosslare - Pembroke route, while a
winter charter for the Irish Ferries vessel St. Patrick is secured in the Baltic
sailing between Finland and Estonia. In
1992, B&I Line joined with Dublin Port to mount a campaign arguing the
merits of having a new multi user ferry terminal sited in Dublin port.
Bell
Lines acquisition - Pride of Bilbao acquired
In
1993, Irish Continental Group continued on the investment trail - first by
acquiring a 25% shareholding in Bell Lines, and later by purchasing the ferry
vessel Pride of Bilbao - the fifth largest night ferry in the world.
At the time of its purchase, the Pride of Bilbao was under charter to
P&O operating between the UK and Spain.
Feederlink
Formed
1993
- Formation of Feederlink Shipping and Trading B.V. - one of the largest
feedering operations in the North Sea operating between the U.K. and Continental
Europe serviced by three vessels.
Construction
of New Ship for Dublin - Holyhead service
In
April 1994, a £46 million order was placed with Dutch shipbuilders Van der
Giessen-de Noord for the construction of a new 23,000 gross registered tons
passenger/freight ro ro ferry vessel for service on the B&I Line
Dublin-Holyhead route. The new
vessel will enter service in June 1995 replacing the existing chartered vessel
m.v. ‘Isle of Innisfree’.
ICARUS-SEA
brings electronic data transfer technology to sea freight sector
In
February 1994, Irish Continental Group took a small investment in Cargo
Community Systems Limited, a company founded by firms operating in the Irish
airline and freight forwarding industries.
This investment led to the development of ICARUS-SEA - a new sea freight service
exclusive to Irish Continental Group by which electronic data interchange
technology heretofore applied to the air freight sector has been expanded for
the benefit of customers booking sea freight consignments for carriage on
ICG’s sea freight services.
New
Brittany Service Announced
In
August 1994, Irish Ferries announced their intention to establish a 1995 service
between Ireland and the Brittany port of Brest.
Because of the later failure of the French Government to give their
approval for the construction of the necessary linkspan at Brest, the company
was forced to shelve their plan to sail to Brest in 1995. The failure by the
French Government to give approval for the linkspan construction in Brest was
the subject of a complaint by Irish Ferries under EU Competition laws.
As an alternative measure, agreement was reached with the port of Roscoff for
the introduction of a 1995 Summer service between Rosslare, Cork and Roscoff.
Similarly, local opposition in the Roscoff region against the introduction of
the Irish Ferries servivce to Roscoff also gave rise to a complaint by Irish
Ferries to the EU.
1995
New Isle of Innisfree Launched
On
January 27th the new £46 million Isle of Innisfree, was launched at the
Rotterdam yard of shipbuilders Van der Giessen-de Noord. The new 23,000 tonnes
vessel is the largest capacity multi-purpose passenger/ro-ro ferry operating
between Ireland and the UK with capacity for 600 passenger cars/ 108 accompanied
freight trucks (or 142 trailers/coaches) and a passenger/crew complement of
1,760 persons. In size, the new vessel has an overall length of 600 feet (181.6
m), 80 feet (23.4 m) wide 124 feet (37.8 m) high from keel to mast head. The
naming ceremony was performed by Mrs. Clodagh Rothwell, wife of Irish
Continental Group Managing Director Mr. Eamonn Rothwell.
Irish
Ferries Name Introduced On Irish Sea
1995
marked the beginning of a new era on the Irish Sea when the name and identity of
Ireland - UK ferry operators B&I Line changed to that of its sister company
Irish Ferries, operators of the Ireland-France ferry services. The name change
to Irish Ferries saw B&I Line adopt the familiar Irish Ferries green/blue
flag motif and white shamrock with vessels being repainted in white with the
name Irish Ferries and a new colourful design on the hull.
New
Container Service to Liverpool introduced
In
March 1995 European Container Services, the Irish Continental Group’s
container division, introduced a new lift-on/lift-off container service between
Dublin and Ellesmere Port, Liverpool with a frequency of 3/4 round-trips weekly
serviced by the chartered container vessel m.v. Passat.
Board
Appointment
April
1995 - Mr. Gerry Hickey joined the Board of Irish Continental Group plc as
Managing Director of its ferries’ division.
Before joining Irish Continental Group he was Assistant Secretary of the
Department of the Marine.
New
Isle of Innisfree enters service on Dublin-Holyhead route
The
new Isle of Innisfree entered scheduled services on the Dublin - Holyhead route
when she made her maiden voyage on May 23rd, signalling a new era in passenger
ferry travel on the Irish Sea.
1996
Second New Cruise Ferry Ordered
A
contract for the design and construction of a second new superferry vessel at a
cost of approximately IR£60 million was placed with Dutch shipbuilders Van Der
Giessen-de Noord of Rotterdam - the yard which constructed the recently-launched
23,000 tonnes Isle of Innisfree.
When introduced in January 1997, the new 33,000 G.R.T. superferry will be the
largest car carrying ferry operating in North Western Europe with a passenger /
freight capacity substantially larger than either of Irish Ferries’ existing
Irish Sea vessels.
Winter
services to France Discontinued
1996
- Due to falling Summer revenues brought about by various competitive factors -
it was decided to discontinue loss-making Winter services to France.
Having operated year-round since the service began in 1973, services
ended in September to be recommenced in March 1997. Saint Patrick II is put up
for sale
New
cruise ferry Isle of Inishmore Launched
The
new £60million, 34,000 tonnes cruise ferry Isle of Inishmore was launched in
Rotterdam October 1996. At 34,000
tonnes, the new Isle of Inishmore is the largest passenger ferry ever to sail
under the Irish flag and the largest multi-purpose passenger ferry operating in
Northern Europe. It has space for
2200 passengers, car capacity of 855 units and truck capacity of 122 units. It
enters service on the Dublin - Holyhead route in early-1997.
The launching ceremony was performed by Mrs. Sandra Carey, wife of Irish
Continental Group Marketing Director Mr. Frank Carey.
1997
Isle of Inishmore Arrives into Dublin
The
cruise ferry Isle of Inishmore arrived into Dublin Port from the shipyard in
Rotterdam on February 17th 1997 and entered scheduled services on the
Dublin-Holyhead route with its maiden voyage on March 2nd following sea trials
and crew training.
With
the arrival of the Isle of Inishmore the cruise ferry Isle of Innisfree was
released from the Dublin-Holyhead route and transferred to Rosslare to service
the Rosslare-Pembroke route.
Board
Changes
Group
Board Director and Managing Director - Ferries Division, Mr. Gerry Hickey
resigns from the Group to pursue other interests.
Group Marketing Director, Frank Carey announces his decision to retire
from the company effective March 1997.
Summer
Service to France Resumes
Services
which were suspended for the Winter period recommenced on March 25th 1997 with
departures every second day to Le Havre, Cherbourg and Roscoff from Rosslare and
Cork serviced by vessel Saint Killian II.
Waterford
Joins Eucon Network
Eucon
commences scheduled lo-lo services from Waterford’s Belferry Terminal.
Decision to enter Waterford fills void left by the collapse of Bell Lines.
St.
Killian Withdraws From Service
Saint
Killian II withdraws from service after fourteen years sailing under the Irish
flag following her final departure from Ringaskiddy, Cork to Le Havre on
September 27th 1997. During 1998,
the vessel is sold to Cap Enterprises (Marintas) of Piraeus and re-named
‘Medina Star’ before entering service on a new Black Sea rail/ferry route
between Poti in Georgia and Odessa in the Ukraine.
1998
Normandy Acquired For French Routes
In
April, the chartered Swedish-owned MV Normandy begins service on the Ireland -
France routes. Two routes in
operation - Rosslare/Cherbourg and Rosslare /Rosscoff (Le Havre and Cork dropped
from network in order to offer shorter sailings/more convenient arrival times).
The ‘Normandy Nights’ cabaret a successful feature of new service.
St.
Patrick ll Leaves Fleet
St.
Patrick ll leaves service with Irish Ferries when a four and a half years
charter agreement is concluded with Hellenic Mediterranean Lines of Greece.
Under the agreement, Hellenic will obtain title to the vessel on completion of
the charter.
Eurofeeders
Acquired
In
May, Eurofeeders Limited (formally Bugsier) is acquired.
This business complements Feederlink’s operation in the North Sea and
Eucon in the Irish Sea with four vessels and a number of ad hoc vessels used
from time to time.
New
Uniforms
As
part of an overall image revamp, sea and shore staff are issued with new
uniforms.
Customer
First
A
company-wide programme entitled ‘Customer First’ is initiated. Designed to
put the focus on customer care and service quality, the programme results in the
announcement of new management structures which includes the appointment of new
‘route managers.’
New
‘Dublin Swift’ fast ferry announced
In
June, agreement was announced with Austal Ships of Australia for the
construction of a new £29million high speed ferry to be introduced on the
Dublin - Holyhead route in Summer 1999. The twin-hulled aluminium built vessel
has capacity for 800 passengers and 200 cars and will complete the voyage from
Dublin - Holyhead in 1h 49mins. It
will operate four return sailings daily. The new ferry, named ‘Jonathan
Swift’ and marketed under the name ‘Dublin Swift’, will operate alongside
the Isle of Inishmore providing a total of six return sailings daily.
Awards
In
October, Irish Ferries wins the Supreme ‘Business Through Tourism in Dublin’
Award and a second ‘Travel and Transport’ category award in a competition
sponsored by Dublin Tourism. The award was presented to Marketing Director Tony
Kelly by Dr. Jim McDaid, Minister for Tourism at a dinner in Dublin Tourism’s
offices in Suffolk Street. These new awards join the awards ‘Ireland’s Best
Ferry Company’ won by the company twice in recent years.
The company introduces ‘first-in-the-world’ live car ferry reservations
service
providing passengers with interactive, real-time, on-line bookings linked to the
company’s Central Reservations System in Dublin on their website at
www.irishferries.com.
New
Tugmasters
November
- Company invests in four new SISU
tugmasters for use at Ferryport.
Duty
Free & Tourist Taxes
December
1998 sees the company grappling with the on-off decisions at EU level in
relation to the abolition of duty free sales and the implications which its
abolition would have in relation to fare levels. Also lurking in the background
is the prospect of a ‘tourist tax’.
1999
- July 8th
Irish
Continental Group contracts with Aker Finnyards OY in Rauma, Finland to build a
50,000 gross tonne vessel - the world’s largest car ferry
- at a cost of EURO 100 million- a vessel large enough to double Irish
Ferries’ freight carrying capacity on their prime Dublin/Holyhead route for
service in Spring 2001.
August
Irish
Ferries ‘Normandy’ undertakes ‘Total Eclipse of the Sun’ cruise which
took place at 11.11hrs on the morning of Wednesday, August 11th 1999.
Irish Ferries purchases m.v. Normandy from Stena Line for EURO 17.7 million.
2000
January
The
giant keel section of the 50,000 tonnes new building is laid at a ceremony in
the shipyards of Aker Finnyards in Rauma, Finland.
February
‘Ulysses’
chosen as the name for the company’s new world’s largest car ferry.
Irish Ferries wins Ireland’s ‘Best Ferry Award’ for the third year in
succession (and fourth time overall) in a poll of Irish travel agents and their
staff.
March
Irish
Ferries’ holidays division wins Maison de la France Top Tour Operator Award
Ireland 1999 and the Campanile Hotels ‘Outstanding Achievement’ Award
presented by the leading French hotels group.
April
Irish
Ferries wins prestigeous ‘Ferry Freight Operator of the Year’ award in the
European Freighting Industry 2000 Awards competition.
Irish Ferries engages in a process of crew training the aim of which is to
ensure that the company is in a position to fully comply with new carrier
liability legislation when it comes into force.
2001
January
The
company’s Ireland - France vessel m.v.‘Normandy’ undergoes a IR£4 million
refit.
Irish Ferries voted ‘Ireland’s Best Ferry company’ for the fourth year in
succession (fifth year overall) in a poll of Irish travel agents and their
staff.
March
Ulysses,
the world’s largest car ferry arrives into Dublin Port (Sunday March 4th)
after her four-day voyage from Aker Finnyards in Rauma, Finland.
Swimmer Mairead Berry - Ireland’s 25-years old Paralympic Games gold medalist
is ‘golden godmother’ to
‘Ulysses’ at a special naming
ceremony held in Dublin Port attended by An Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern TD
(Wednesday, March 21st) in advance
of her maiden voyage to Holyhead (Sunday, March 25th).
Alex
Mullin, Director of Operations with the company retires after 35 years of
service. He remains as Non-Executive Director of ICG.
May
Ulysses'
wins the prestigious 'Most Significant New Build - Ferry' category award in the
Cruise & Ferry magazine 2001 Awards competition.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
AND THANKS TO :
CHRISTINE RYDER AND IRISH FERRIES
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