Stena Embla will come into service on the Birkenhead to Belfast ferry route early in 2021, replacing Stena Mersey, after completing sea trials in China’s Yellow Sea. Tony McDonough reports

New generation Stena Line ferry Stena Embla is on schedule to begin operating on the Birkenhead to Belfast route early in 2021.

Swedish-based Stena says Stena Embla was successfully put through its paces in China’s Yellow Sea. The RoPax vessel was built at the CMI Jingling Weihai Shipyard in China and was finished on schedule, despite the COVID-19 pandemic.

Early in 2021 it will begin service on Stena’s Birkenhead to Belfast route, which operates up to two return sailings seven days a week, carrying passengers and freight. It will replace Stena Mersey which has operated the route from the Twelve Quays terminal for 10 years.

In March, another new RoPax vessel Stena Edda, began operating the route, replacing Stena Lagan. A third new vessel Stena Estrid operates elsewhere on the Irish Sea. Stena Mersey will join its sister ship Stena Lagan in Turkey where both vessels are being extended, before re-deployment on the Baltic Sea.

Since the end of the initial COVID-19 lockdown Stena has seen a surge in demand on its Irish Sea routes. On September 2 it introduced Stena Panorama on the Birkenhead-Belfast route. The freight-only vessel also calls at Heysham.

In 2019, Stena and Peel Ports, owner of the Twelve Quays terminal, jointly invested £17m in an upgrade of the facility to prepare it for the introduction of the new vessels.

“It is great to see that the shipyard has not missed a beat during this year’s final stages of the build. Today the last of our three next generation ferries achieved a very important milestone bang on time” said Stena Line’s Paul Grant, trade director, Irish Sea.

“Sea trials are a critical phase in a new ship’s development; it is our first opportunity to test a new vessel out at sea and put her through her paces to ensure that she is up to our high standards.”

Sea trials are designed to test the vessel at sea in order to ensure that all systems are fully operational and in line with strict specifications outlined by Stena Line. The tests include areas such as engine performance and fuel consumption, navigation and radio equipment, emergency systems, speed tests, manoeuvrability, engine and thruster tests as well as safety tests.

Part of a multi-million-pound investment in the region, the new Stena Line ferries are amongst the most advanced vessels in operation. They are 25% more fuel-efficient than existing vessels and with 215 metres in length they are much larger than today’s standard RoPax vessels, providing 30% more freight capacity

The name Embla is connected to Stena Line’s Swedish heritage. Norse mythology, Embla was the first woman. Her name comes from the Old Norse word for ‘elm’.

Stena Line chief executive Niclas Mårtensson said that the introduction of Stena Embla and her sister ships, Stena Estrid and Stena Edda, reflected the company’s commitment to the Irish Sea.

The Irish Sea is very important to Stena Line’s global business and represents a significant part of our overall revenue,” said Mr Mårtensson. “We strongly believe that our ferry business on the Irish Sea will continue to grow.