LONDON (Alliance News) - Irish Continental Group PLC on Tuesday unveiled an agreement under which Germany-based Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesselschaft & Co will build a cruise ferry for the shipping and transport company at a contract price of EUR144 million.
The cruise ferry will accommodate 1,885 passengers and crew, with 435 cabins and with capacity for 2,800 lane metres of freight, plus an additional dedicated car deck with capacity for 300 passenger cars.
The ferry is scheduled for delivery in May 2018, Irish Continental said in a statement, with 20% of the contract price to be paid in instalments during the construction period.
The remaining 80% will be paid on delivery. Irish Continental intends to utilise a combination of existing cash resources and loan facilities to finance the ferry. The pre-delivery instalment payments to Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesselschaft will be protected by means of bank guarantees.
It is likely the new cruise ferry will be introduced on routes served by the chartered ship MV Epsilon, Irish Continental said, currently providing year-round services from Dublin to Holyhead during the week, and from Ireland to France at weekends.
Irish Continental said the ferry will provide additional freight and tourism capacity on both routes. In addition to increased capacity, it will provide in "significant" cost savings and improved route and fleet management efficiencies.
"This investment underpins the confidence the group has in both the freight and passenger tourism markets between Ireland, Britain and France. The construction of a cruise ferry of this size will offer a premium experience for all our customers, in line with our commitment to deliver the best in service, in reliability and flexibility across all our routes. We also expect to be well positioned to accommodate the changing expectations of our customers, and to benefit from significant operational and financial benefits following the delivery in 2018," Chief Executive Officer Eamonn Rothwell said in a statement.
Shares in Irish Continental were unchanged at EUR5.30 on Tuesday morning.
By Samuel Agini; samagini@alliancenews.com; @samuelagini
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Irish Cont. (ICGC)