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shipping news 49Deputy PM Clegg includes Stena Line in Welsh TourThe Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg included a visit to the port of Fishguard inPembrokeshire and a tour of the Stena Europe as part of his whistle-stop of Wales.The Deputy PM was givena warm welcome at FishguardPort by Stena Line’s Area DirectorMichael McGrath and RouteDirector Ian Davies along withlocal community representatives.The visit to Fishguard also includeda tour of the Stena Europe andan opportunity for the DeputyPM to meet members of theStena Line crew and discusssome of the issues faced by thelocal community in Fishguard.During his tour of the StenaEurope, the Deputy Prime Ministersaid: “It’s been really impressive tobe shown round this extraordinaryoperation that you run. You’vejust been talking about thepressures and challenges that youface which is very useful for usto hear. The company is a reallife line and a really importantpart of the local economy.”Speaking after the visit Stena Line’sRoute Director Ian Davies said: “Weare delighted that Deputy PrimeMinister Clegg included Fishguardand Stena Line in his Welsh touritinerary. There was a real buzzaround the town in advance of hisvisit and our staff were delightedto have the opportunity to putsome questions directly to theDeputy PM on topics such as youthunemployment and fuel costs.“It was very encouraging to hearhis responses in relation to the keyrole Stena Line plays in the localeconomy. As one of the largestemployers in the region we hopewe have been able to inform theDeputy PM on a range of topicswhich he and his colleagueswill encounter in their efforts topromote economic prosperity inWales now and in the future.”The Deputy PM was given a warm welcome Port by Stena Line’s Area DirectorMichael McGrath and Route Director Ian DaviesStena Line Invests Further in Liverpool – Belfast ServiceStena Line has purchased the Stena Mersey and Stena Lagan, the two RoPax vessels that itacquired when the company acquired the Liverpool-Belfast route for £45m last summer.The ships had been operatingthe service on a charter basisand as part of Stena Line’sIrish Sea continual Irish Seainvestment programme thesevessels will now become partof the Stena Line fleet.The ships recently underwent asignificant £4m refurbishmentupgrade at the Harland &Wolff shipyard in Belfast andas Stena Line’s Area Director(Irish Sea) Michael McGrathsaid, they will play an importantpart in helping to developthis important commerciallink between both regions.“When we purchased the routelast summer we conducted acomprehensive review of theservice and a key considerationwas the status of the ships. Thevessels were an excellent fit forthe route which is an importantfreight and passenger channeland purchasing the ships meantthat we could commit significantresources into bring the StenaMersey and Stena Lagan intothe Stena Line family and givethe ships our own unique look,feel and high quality service. Wehave managed to achieve theintegration with a high qualityNew Route Director at Stena LineRichard Horswill has been appointed Headof Freight and Route Director on Stena Line’sLiverpool/Heysham-Belfast service.Richard has recently overseen major refurbishment work ontwo of the Liverpool route ships and is developing a number ofinitiatives around the onboard travel and retail experience as well asimproving cost efficiencies and flexible customer service models.He has been employed in the transport and logistics sector in varioussenior and executive positions for over 30 years and has specialised insales, operations, turnaround, integration and supply chain strategy.Richard comes to Stena Line from The Garden Centre Groupand Fortnum & Mason bringing with him extensive experienceof the retail industry as well as the transportation sector.refit for both ships and I amconfident that new and existingcustomers will see how StenaLine is taking the route to a newlevel of comfort and efficiency.”The Stena Mersey and StenaLagan were built at theVisentini shipyard in Italy in2005 and can accommodate980 passengers and provide 2662 lane metres for freight andpassenger vehicles. Both shipsare equipped with 121 Cabins(4 berths) and provide two dailysailings from Liverpool to Belfast.in briefIrish FerriesAppointsOperationsDirectorAndrew Sheen has beenappointed OperationsDirector, Irish Ferries.A former engineer on thecompany’s fast ferry JonathanSwift, Andrew joined IrishFerries from the UK’s Maritimeand Coastguard Agencyhaving served as TechnicalPerformance Manager,Engineer and Ship Surveyor.A B.Eng (Hons), M.Sc andChartered Engineer, he will beaccountable for Irish Ferries’ shipssafety and operations, all portterminals within the company’snetwork and costs associatedwith the company’s operationsin Ireland, Britain and France.From Liverpool, he succeedsJohn Reilly who has retiredfrom the company aftermany years of service.Shipping News 3pgs.indd 49 09/05/2012 12:19