Stena Line reached another milestone in the build of its NewMax ships, launching Stena Futura into the water and laying the keel of the second ship, to be named Stena Connecta.
Last week, Stena held a joint ‘launch’ and ‘keel-laying’ ceremony at the China Merchants Jinling Shipyard, Weihai, celebrating the release of Stena Futura into the water for the first time, and the laying of the keel for Stena Connecta, which marks the beginning of the build.
Once operational, Stena Connecta and Stena Futura will enhance freight capacity by 40 per cent on the Belfast-Heysham route in response to an increase in customer demand for services between Northern Ireland and Great Britain.
The two NewMax hybrid vessels will play a key role in Stena Line’s sustainability journey as they will both be able to operate on methanol fuel. They will also be enhanced with built in technologies that will be able to utilise both battery propulsion and shore power, when available.
Stena Line is working closely with methanol suppliers, ensuring future volumes of e-methanol and fulfilling their strategic ambition of shifting to renewable fuels and cutting 30% of its CO2 emissions by 2030.
Paul Grant, Trade Director Irish Sea North, Stena Line said: “We’re delighted to announce the name of our second new build ship, Stena Connecta. It is exciting to see the progress being made on our new ships for the Belfast-Heysham route, which as Connecta’s name suggests, provides a vital connection across the Irish Sea for our customers. We’re looking forward to welcoming Stena Futura to the Irish Sea in Autumn 2025.”
Joe O’Neill, CEO of Belfast Harbour said: “Stena Line is one of Belfast Harbour’s most important strategic partners and we welcome the company’s latest significant investment in the key Belfast-Heysham route. It is fantastic to see Stena Line not only respond to increased customer demand by investing in new vessels that will substantially increase freight capacity, but also to see them do so in a way that further improves the sustainability of its fleet.”
