Ferries for sale as landing facilities still not available
Ferry Online Travel News 12/07/2010
Delayed landing facilities lead to vessels for proposed ferry service going on sale.
The owner of two ferries scheduled to provide new services has listed the vessels for sale after delays to landing facilities left the new service seriously delayed. A new ferry service linking Swansea and Ilfracombe in north Devon was supposed to go into operation a year ago. However, landing facilities still have not been developed, meaning the ferries cannot be used. This has prompted the investor that owns the two ships to put them up for sale.
However, Chris Marrow, chairman of Severn Link, insists the sales advertisements are currently only a speculative move by the investor. Given the delays caused by the lack of landing facilities, the financial projections for the ferry project have changed. This has led the investor that owns the mortgages on the ships, Rapparee and Shanklin, in order to keep their business options open.
Meanwhile, Severn Link is trying to develop a re-investment programme that would fund the construction of landing facilities at Swansea. The two ferries are currently offered for sale on three commercial websites. If they were to be sold, Severn Link would be left needing to find replacement vessels.
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