Advertisement

Pentland ferry business up for sale

A buyer is being sought for the passenger ferry business run by the same family for more than 50 years which operates on Scotland’s north coast.

John O’Groats Ferries, which runs between Caithness and Orkney, was put up for sale a year ago and is on the market for £1.4 million.

The business was started by Ian Thomas in 1971 and is now run by his son Ivor, daughter Deborah and her husband Fred Fermor. All three have worked on the summer ferry for the past three decades.

Mr Fermor said: “We’ve enjoyed running things here at John O’Groats Ferries for many years and could happily keep going on, but we feel it’s a good time to try something new.

“We’ll be taking life a bit easier and travelling more but in some ways it’s a reluctant sale.

Selling agents Christie and Co said the business currently operated for five months of the year, but there was scope to extend its trading season.

The ship used is the 1986-built 186gt Pentland Venture, which can carry

Ships Montly - January 2024

World’s first hybrid solar-powered inland shipping vessel

Dutch solar innovator Wattlab has delivered a breakthrough energy system for HGK Shipping’s cargo vessel Blue Marlin, marking a major step forward in sustainable...
Advertisement

Related articles

World’s first hybrid solar-powered inland shipping vessel

Dutch solar innovator Wattlab has delivered a breakthrough energy system for HGK Shipping’s cargo vessel Blue Marlin, marking...

Rebuilt Stena Foreteller returns to service with enhanced efficiency

In the end of July 2025, the ro-ro ship Stena Foreteller returned to service on the Europoort/Rotterdam-Immingham route...

Outfitting of the Nexans Electra CLV begins at Ulstein Verft

The hull of the state-of-the-art DP3 cable-laying vessel Nexans Electra arrived at Ulstein Verft on 5 July 2025....

Historic cruise ship Astoria goes for scrapping

The world's oldest cruise vessel Astoria finally reaches the end of the line. After 77 years of service,...