French shipping company Brittany Ferries has chartered pure RoRo vessel Pelican to carry freight between Poole and Bilbao, in northern Spain.
Featuring a length of 155.5 meters, the vessel, which will start its employment with the company in early February, is expected to conduct two round-trips per week.
The 1999-built Pelican, operated by shipping company Maritime Nantaise, has the capacity for around one hundred unaccompanied trailers and twelve drivers.
“Freight activity to and from the United Kingdom is undergoing a period of strong growth, particularly the unaccompanied market,” said Simon Wagstaff, Brittany Ferries’ freight director.
“We see this on a daily basis in the garages of our vessels, especially on those operating to and from Spain. Our charter of Pelican will help us meet growing demand from freight customers and free up more garage space on other ships.”
The charter contract was signed for twelve months, with an option of extension, and includes crew.
Last year Brittany Ferries reported a 20 per cent increase in freight traffic across all routes. 2016 has also started strongly and the company expects that greater capacity will drive even more business through Poole.