Swedish shipping company Stena Line has welcomed the first of its new hybrid freight ferries to Belfast Harbour in the UK.
The purpose-built Ro-Ro vessel Stena Futura will go into service on the freight-only Belfast to Heysham route on Monday, September 22.
The vessel will operate 12 sailings per week, providing additional freight capacity on the route that connects local haulers directly into the North of England road freight network.
Stena Line said that, once operational, Stena Futura and sister ship Stena Connecta – which is currently under construction and due to enter service in early 2026 – will enhance freight capacity by 40 per cent on the Belfast-Heysham in response to an increase in customer demand for services between Northern Ireland and Great Britain.
Construction of the new Ro-Ro was undertaken at China Merchants Jinling Shipyard Weihai.
Stena Futura has a length of 147 metres and capacity for up to 2,800 lane metres of freight. An optimised hull form will meanwhile enable the ship to transport more freight per voyage compared to vessels of similar size.
