Brittany Ferries Names Two New Ships, Eyes CO2 Savings from Fleet Renewal

French shipping company Brittany Ferries has unveiled names for its next two ships and promised significant CO2 savings from its fleet renewal plans. 

Kerry will be the name for the one-year charter vessel arriving in November 2019. The newbuild will cover the Cork to Santander route from November 2019 to November 2020.

In addition, Santoña has been chosen for the company’s third E-Flexer class ship. To be chartered from Stena, Santoña is part of the company’s EUR 550 million (USD 616.5 million) fleet renewal program focused on sustainable development.

To be the third LNG-powered vessel to join the Brittany Ferries fleet, Santoña will arrive in 2023. Like its sister ship Salamanca, which is expected to be delivered in 2022, it will be powered by environmentally-friendly LNG.

“Brittany Ferries is committed to LNG as the most environmentally-friendly fuelling solution currently available for shipping,” Frédéric Pouget, Brittany Ferries director of fleet and port operations, said.

“Despite the significant investment made in scrubber technology for our ships, we know that the best way to respect the environments in which we operate, and to exceed emission reduction targets, is to commit to LNG. This is what we have done with an investment worth half a billion euros.”

The company’s first LNG ship, Honfleur, will be operational next year. It is currently under construction in Germany and will serve the company’s busiest Portsmouth to Caen route.

Emission cuts

The company’s fleet renewal program envisages a significant reduction in carbon emissions per passenger compared with vessels currently operating between the UK and Spain. That’s because Cap Finistère and Baie de Seine are less efficient vessels with much smaller passenger and freight capacities than the LNG E-Flexer class ships that will replace them, according to Brittany Ferries.

The company will also run four round trips from the UK to Spain each week, instead of five. This means a significant saving in fuel consumption and emissions.

These savings, combined with improved efficiency thanks to better hull design and modern engines, and the use of LNG to power vessels, will realize an estimated saving of around 46% CO2 per passenger compared with current vessels on the company’s long-haul routes, Brittany Ferries said.

LNG refueling

In terms of refuelling infrastructure, Brittany Ferries has developed a solution to re-fuel its first LNG vessel, Honfleur. In partnership with Total, industry-standard, containerised LNG will be trucked on board, then lifted into position by onboard cranes where they will replenish Honfleur’s fixed, onboard LNG storage tank. The process will be reversed when mobile tanks are empty.

Additional costs of Honfleur’s LNG systems and equipment have been partially offset by the support of the French Government “Program of Investments for the Future” and operated by ADEME.

For Spanish operations, Brittany Ferries has signed a letter of intent with Spanish energy company Repsol for the delivery of LNG. Under the agreement between the two companies, Repsol would install quayside LNG storage facility at ports in northern Spain. This would then be used to fuel both E-Flexer ships during their calls.

The E-Flexer class ships will be amongst the largest in Brittany Ferries’ fleet. Each will be 215 meters long with 3,000 garage lane meters for freight vehicles, and capacity for around 1,000 passengers.