P&O Ferries has signed a contract with Guangzhou Shipyard International Ltd worth EUR 260 million to deliver a new generation of ships on the English Channel. Two new 230-metre super-ferries – the largest ever to sail between Dover and Calais – will be operational by 2023, with options to build two further vessels by 2024. The major investment will secure P&O Ferries’ position as the leading provider of transport for people and goods between Britain and the Continent.
Janette Bell, Chief Executive of P&O Ferries, said: “These will be the most sustainable ships ever to sail on the English Channel, providing the best ever customer experience and setting new standards for reliability and cost efficiency. Together with our freight and overnight routes on the North Sea, the new ships will offer customers travelling between Britain and Europe an unrivalled range of services connecting sea and land. They are designed to secure P&O Ferries’ position as a vital part of Europe’s transport infrastructure into the 2040s.”
Major innovations of the new super-ferries will include:
-) Cutting fuel use by 40 per cent through a combination of fuel and battery propulsion.
-) The heat recovery system saves fuel which reduces the vessel’s carbon footprint.
-) Future proofing anticipates the ‘zero carbon emissions ship’.
-) A double-ended design and two bridges on the ship, meaning that there is no need for it to turn around. This will save seven minutes of time on both the outbound and return journeys and one ton of fuel, a sixth of the amount used on the entire 21-mile crossing.
-) Outside deck areas to provide viewing platforms of the White Cliffs of Dover.
-) A power management system to close down parts of the ship when not in use.
During peak summer season the ship will carry 1,500 people. However, during off-peak sailings, up to two thirds of the ship can be closed and the power management system will use innovative? software to turn off the lighting and ventilation in empty areas as well as optimizing the utilization of engines, batteries and energy recovered from waste heat.
-) Revolutionary new shape of hull for the English Channel and azimuth thrusters which increase manoeuvrability of the ship.
P&O Ferries is a leading pan-European ferry and logistics company, sailing 27,000 times a year on eight major routes between Britain, France, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Holland and Belgium. It operates more than 20 vessels which carry 8.4 million passengers and 2.3 million freight units every year.
