Built in Japan, Stena Hibernia has been on the Heysham-Belfast service since September 2015.
GEORGE HOLLAND
Stena Line ships are set to sail in and out of the Lancashire port of Heysham for the next 77 years, after the operator signed a deal with Peel Ports that runs through until the end of the century.
At present there are two daily sailings either way covered by 1996-built/13,017gt stern-loading sisters Stena Hibernia and Stena Scotia, which were built at the Miho Shipyard at Shimizu in Japan and first ran for Norfolkline on a North Sea service from Felixstowe as Maersk Importer and Maersk Exporter They came to Stena Line in 2014 and started a new service between Rotterdam and Killingholme on the Humber and then briefly linked Rotterdam and Harwich before a switch to the Irish Sea in August 2018. Each vessel offers more than 1,680m lane metres of lorry and trailer space with cabins for 12 drivers.