Stena Line’s newest E-Flexer ferry Stena Estrid started service on the Irish Sea route from Dublin to Holyhead on January 13, 2020, after more than six years in planning and construction.
The next-generation RoPax Stena Estrid will make two daily return trips on the route Dublin-Holyhead.
“This has been a very significant month, not just for Stena Line but for the future of ferry travel on the Irish Sea, as we welcomed Stena Estrid to her new home on the Irish Sea. Her sister Stena Edda is now delivered and on her way back to the Irish Sea and is expected to commence operations from Liverpool to Belfast this spring,” Niclas Mårtensson, CEO Stena Line, commented.
A third vessel Stena Embla is expected to be introduced on the same route in early 2021, the company said.
“I’m proud that Stena Line continues to shape the industry for the next generation of freight and travel customers… The E-Flexer class vessels we now introduce enables us to do this with more efficient loading and unloading operations, increased freight capacity,” Mårtensson added.
At 215 meters in length, Stena Estrid is one of the most advanced vessels in operation and larger than today’s standard RoPax vessels, with space to carry 120 cars and 1,000 passengers, and a freight capacity of 3,100 lane meters, meaning a 50 percent increase in freight tonnage on the route.
In a separate announcement, the ferry company informed that its new ferry route between Halmstad in Sweden and Grenaa in Denmark was officially opened on February 1.
The new route will be operated by the 135-meter-long RoPax ferry Stena Nautica with a capacity of 900 passengers and 1,265 lane meters.
Stena Line currently operates 37 vessels on 20 routes in Northern Europe.