News
Brittany Ferries’ Salamanca is blessed in the presence of Jean-Yves Le Drian
On Saturday 5th February, Brittany Ferries’ first liquefied natural gas-powered was blessed in Roscoff, Brittany in the presence of Jean-Yves Le Drian, French minister for Europe and foreign affairs.
Salamanca joins a fleet of nine Brittany Ferries ships sailing under the French flag. She is the latest and most environmentally-friendly ship operated by Brittany Ferries, the largest employer of French seafarers.
215 metres long and with capacity for 1015 passengers and 2,700 metres of vehicles, Salamanca is the leading French ferry in terms of energy transition: one of the largest, most modern and cleanest in the European Union. It is also the company’s first vessel to run on liquefied natural gas (LNG), which emits virtually no sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide or particulate matter after combustion.
Salamanca will set sail from Roscoff on Sunday 6th February to Brest for the One Ocean Summit. Brittany Ferries is proud to partner with this event dedicated to the ocean, which will welcome 20 heads of state.
Salamanca will enter service on 27th March, serving Brittany Ferries’ services from Portsmouth to Bilbao (Spain) and Cherbourg (France).
-Ends-
For images visit https://brittanyferriesnewsroom.com/image_category/salamanca/
About Brittany Ferries
Brittany Ferries was conceived in 1972, starting life as a freight-only service on 2nd January the following year. The first sailing linked Roscoff in Brittany with Plymouth in the South of England and carried a cargo of artichokes and cauliflowers. Since then the company has progressively launched, then strengthened shipping routes. Today millions of passengers and businesses transporting goods by sea across the so-called Atlantic Arc (France, UK, Spain and Ireland) rely on the links forged through six decades of operation. In addition to cutting congestion and emissions on busy roads, these motorways-of the sea have helped enrich local communities, creating jobs and nurturing international tourism. More details here: https://corporate.brittany-ferries.com/en/press.aspx
Key figures (2020)
Revenue: €202.4 million (€469 million in 2019)
Fleet renewal: Four new vessels on the horizon, two powered by LNG entering service in 2022 and 2023; two LNG-hybrid powered ships arriving in the years that follow
Employment: 2,474 employees, including 1,600 seafarers (full-time equivalent)
Passengers: 752,102 in 2020 (2,498,354 in 2019)
Freight: 160,377 in 2020 (201,554 in 2019)
12 vessels connecting France, the United Kingdom, Spain and Ireland, via 14 maritime routes
12 ports: Roscoff, Saint-Malo, Cherbourg, Caen, Le Havre, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Poole, Cork, Rosslare, Santander, Bilbao.
Tourist impact: 231,000 unique visitors to France, generating 2.6 million overnight stays in 2020 (857,000 in 2019 with 8.7 million overnight stays in 2019)
Press contacts:
Nigel Wonnacott [email protected]
Christopher Jones [email protected]