NEWS BULLETIN - DECEMBER 2006

RTÉ's Radio 1's excellent maritime magazine programme Seascapes is moving to a new time slot at 20:30 on Fridays commencing January 12, 2007. In the UK it is broadcast on 252AM and of course over the internet.

Bad atmosphere drove staff out, claims union

Irish cabin crew now account for just over 1pc of the workforce on board Irish Ferries' ships, more than a year after the protests which rocked the company.

Although 48 of the 500-strong workforce elected to continue working on board the ISLE OF INISHMORE,  ULYSSES and the JONATHAN SWIFT last year, only seven now remain.

SIPTU, which led the protests against the company's plan to replace the staff with cheap labour from eastern Europe, said the remaining Irish workers felt there was no future for them in the company.

According to SIPTU, some of the Irish took jobs with rival Stena Line. "The reason they left is that they couldn't endure the atmosphere any longer and the company would have made it clear to them they were surplus to requirements," said its branch secretary Paul Smyth.

But the majority went into unskilled work in the catering and restaurant trade. The Irish Ferries dispute led to unions threatening to pull out of the national pay talks and protest marches by hundreds of thousands of workers last year.

It was resolved when Irish Ferries agreed to pay redundancy to its Irish staff; guarantee rates of pay equivalent to at least the minimum wage to new staff; and allow them to join a union.

However, Mr Smyth said that not a single member of the predominantly Latvian, Lithuanian and Polish staff had joined the union.

This was because the union was not able to gain access to the ships to recruit workers and the workers themselves were not coming ashore.

"The problem is that the company has worked stringently to ensure those people do not become members," Mr Smyth said.

Irish Ferries' ships currently sail under the Cypriot flag and are not legally bound by Irish employment legislation.

Mr Smyth warned that once the unions' agreement with Irish Ferries expired in June 2008, the company would be free to pay what they wanted to the Eastern European workers.

"That's certainly going to be way below the minimum wage."

Irish Ferries said it did not wish to respond to the comments individually. But a spokesman said the company was operating in an extremely competitive industry, which was being affected by low-cost flights and other low cost ferry operators.

"As a company, we would be in a much more serious position today if we hadn't taken the steps we had. Our costs were too high."

He added: "We are extremely happy with the quality of service which our new crew are now providing to our passengers." [IRISH INDEPENDENT]

ISLE OF MAN STEAM PACKET COMPANY

ELLAN VANNIN will be the subject of an ITV documentary programme at the end of this January 2007.

The ELLAN VANNIN disaster will be on of a number of ships featured in a new series on ship wrecks "Lost at Sea. Broadcast date for the episode will be on January 30.

The ship became the only Steam Packet vessel to be lost at sea in public service when she foundered after being hit by massive waves whilst en-route from Ramsey to Liverpool on 3rd of December 1909.

The 21 crew and 15 passengers all lost their lives.

The programme will feature contributions from the Manx heritage Foundation's Charles Guard, and Manx Radio's very own Alex Brindley.

The series also examines other famous shipping disasters such as the Lusitania and the Eyemouth  fishing disaster.

SEA EXPRESS I sailing to and from Liverpool was cancelled on Friday December 29 due to adverse conditions, passengers were diverted via the BEN-MY-CHREE.

JAMES FISHER EVERARDS

The acquisition of F.T. Everard & Sons was approved at a shareholders AGM on December 28, 2006.

ARDUITY  made her last voyage for the company on Friday December 29, 2006.

She sailed from Stanlow on the Manchester Ship Canal bound for Derry where she was due to arrive on Saturday December 30. ARDUITY was then due to set sail for Malta and new owners.

Prior to Christmas the Barrow based company announced that it had been awarded a contract to deliver a new Submarine Rescue Vehicle to the Republic of Korea Navy ('ROKN') following an open competitive tender.

The contract win, worth £10m over a period of 3 years, is the first since James Fisher Defence acquired the UK submarine rescue service assets in November 2006 from the Government's Defence Sales Agency in order to provide submarine rescue services to other countries.

ROKN selected JFD to supply and commission the new vehicle based on the quality of the design and tender submission together with JFD's successful track record in supporting the ROKN's existing rescue submersible, the LR5K, which has included the provision of a new all-steel dry-mating skirt in September this year. This enabled the ROKN to achieve a dry transfer from a submarine for the first time for over three years.

The new submarine rescue vehicle, DSAR-5, will benefit from JFD's 15 years' experience in the operation of the United Kingdom Submarine Rescue System, including the LR5 rescue submersible which was designed and built by JFD. The DSAR-5 is capable of locking onto the escape hatch of a stranded submarine and transferring up to 16 submariners, recovering them to the surface where the rescue vehicle may interface the decompression facility onboard the 'Chung-Hae-Jin', the ROKN's submarine rescue mothership.

Commenting on the contract, Simon Harris, JFD Managing Director, and a director of James Fisher, said:

'Our success in winning the contract to supply the new submarine rescue vehicle to the Republic of Korea Navy is testament to the design and build capability of James Fisher Defence and the unrivalled reputation of our operations team. We look forward to working closely with ROKN and delivering a world-leading rescue
submersible.'

Ambitious proposals for a much bigger harbour at Penzance have been put forward as funding arrangements for an improved link to Scilly start to emerge. Officers from the Penzance Harbour Users' Association say that the harbour has remained fundamentally unchanged for 125 years and that radical changes are necessary if the harbour is to satisfy the great upsurge in recreational boating and exploit the commercial possibilities.

Peel Holdings have apparently purchased the Cammell Laird shipyard at Birkenhead from developers Reddington Finance. A public announcement is expected soon. Peel Holdings hold a 50% stake in Northwestern Ship Repairers. Such a move is likely to secure the future of the yard which was leased by NSL from Reddington.

The Companies House database records the formation of a new company on December 14, 2006:

Name & Registered Office:

MERCHANT BRILLIANT - the owners of the ship which is chartered by Norfolk Line have agreed to pay the crew members over €120,000 in pay arrears.

The Russian vessel was detained at Dublin Port on Friday under a High Court order.

The International Transport Federation claimed that the twenty Russian and Latvian workers on board were owed months of back-pay.

Owners have now agreed to reimburse the staff, and a motion will be brought to the High Court this afternoon to get the ship released.

Earlier this month, the ITF secured ?127,000 in back-wages for the crew of another vessel, the MERCHANT BRAVERY, which has the same owners as the MERCHANT BRILLIANT.

A further development reported by RTÉ on December 19 reported that there was further trouble on board MERCHANT BRILLIANT:

Another row has broken out between ADG, the owners of the Merchant Brilliant and the ship's crew. Earlier, the company agreed to pay wages owed to the crew, and shortly afterward a High Court order preventing the vessel from leaving Dublin Port was lifted.

The International Transport Workers' Federation says that the owners initially refused to stamp the crew's seafarers books to allow them to go ashore unless they returned the money.

Eight of crew decided to leave the ship. The three Latvians and five Russians are to stay at Dublin Airport overnight before flying home on December 20.

Windermere's Car Ferry lost almost £90,000 in takings, following a mechanical glitch. An annual report, due to be delivered to the Windermere Ferry Advisory Committee on Monday, puts expected revenue at the end of the 2006/7 financial year almost £55,000 below what was previously anticipated.

A new type of underwater cable was used to run the ferry service last year, but it proved to be incompatible.During December last year and into 2006, frayed and then snapped cables led to the ferry being out of action for a total of 33 days.

Just over 90 hours were lost through weather stoppages. Highways network manager, John Robinson, who helped compile the financial report, said: "We thought we had a bargain with some cables at considerably less than we would normally pay for them. We put them on and the boat started to move sideways. The cable was more abrasive than the one we normally use and it had damaged the drive wheels."

New cables were ordered from Malaysia and fitted, which saw the ferry back on the water, although much needed revenue had been lost. The report said: "The final results were much worse than anticipated.

Because of mechanical failure during the latter part of the year, 33 days were lost. The loss of income combined with the cost of repair resulted in a surplus of only £85,327." The expected total was £175,420.

Although the problem surrounding the cable is now solved, measures need to be taken to bring the financial health of the operation back into line. One option would be to increase fares, but the annual report says that with one 25 per cent price hike already this year, any increase of fares would be likely to result in "a significant drop in usage of the ferry, with users taking the alternative option of driving around the lake".

An alternative would be for the county council to receive a reduced contribution from the ferry, enabling the service to build up its financial reserves.

The final option would be to reduce the operating hours of the ferry during off-peak periods which would save on staff time along with wear and tear on the machinery.

Mr Robinson, said: "The way forward now is not to get into that sort of trouble again. We lost a lot of money through loss of income and repairs and that is why we are in the pickle that we are. I think the situation is recoverable. We have got to keep it going reliably."

Irish Continental Group plc issued the following update on trading prior on December 14:

Trading in the period since we issued our interim statement in September has been ahead of expectations. At the time of our interim statement, car volumes year to date were down 12% and our expectation for the full year was a decline of approximately 7%. Based on the experience in October and November we now expect a smaller full year decline of approximately 5%.

In the Roll on Roll Off freight market our volumes were up 3% year to date in September and our expectation was for a full year increase of between 9%.and 10%. Based on volumes achieved in October and November we expect an increase of around 11% for the full year.

In the light of the above we would, in the absence of unforeseen circumstances, expect the underlying full year profit before tax, before separately disclosable and non- recurring items, to be ahead of current market expectations.

EXPANSION OF PORT FACILITIES IN DUBLIN

Separately ICG is pleased to announce an extension of its port terminal facility in Dublin Port

Agreement has been reached with Dublin Port Company on a development that will significantly increase the capacity of our Dublin based container terminal (DFT). The terminal, which is currently the largest in the country, will see its capacity increase by almost 50% (from180,000 lifts to 270,000 lifts annually) as a result of this development. Additional container handling machinery, including a new ship to shore gantry crane will be introduced. The development also involves the extension of the terminal by more than 7 acres (3 hectares) and the quay wall will be lengthened by 60metres

In its new form, DFT will be capable of handling the next generation of vessels that will call to Dublin Port and through its investment in state of the art ship to shore and secondary handling machinery, the terminal will be capable of achieving and maintaining excellent service levels. The development is expected to be completed by early 2008. The provision of additional capacity in Dublin Port comes at a time when volume throughput continues to grow strongly and when the need for additional unitised capacity has been recognised by all industry stakeholders.

IRISH NAVAL SERVICE

Children from the Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children in Crumlin will visited the Naval Vessel L.E. EITHNE during its visit to Dublin between 11am and 1pm on Wednesday the 13^th of December.

The Ship has strong links with Crumlin with the hospital being EITHNE’s adopted charity The ship  took time out from its busy schedule as it docks on Sir John Rogerson’s Quay on Dublin’s Southside to host the Christmas party. Santa Claus visited and and arrived in one of the ship’s boats at about 12:00.

For those children unable to attend on the day, crew members paid a visit to the Hospital itself on Thursday December 14.

Norfolkline Irish Sea Ferry Services installing passport scanning technology similar to machines used in airports. Norfolkline are the first ferry operator in Northern Ireland to have such technology, which will increase the speed of check-in for those passengers using their passports as a form of identification.

Diane Poole, General Manager - Passenger said, "Norfolkline Irish Sea Ferry Services are committed to ensuring all our passengers have a relaxing journey from the moment they embark the ferry. Beginning with a quick and easy check-in service, this new technology allows us to check-in passengers with increased efficiency and we would encourage all our passengers to check in with valid passports to avail of this service."

MERCHANT BRAVERY had been in Laxey Bay from around 02:00 on Thursday December 14. Her AIS had been showing a Heysham ETA of 22:00 on Wednesday.  She was reported as being at anchor with "technical problems" believed to be in the electrical department. However, the technical problems just appear to have coincided with the detention of her sister MERCHANT BRILLIANT by the Irish authorities! - See below. She eventually departed around 22:20 on Saturday December 16.

The photograph by Jenny Williamson shows her in Laxey Bay with the Isle of Man Government patrol vessel BARRULE passing in the back ground.

MERCHANT BRILLIANT The High Court in Dublin  granted a ship's arrest against the cargo ship over claims that $204,000, or €153,788, is owed to the 20 man crew of Latvians and Russians.

International Transport Federation inspector Ken Fleming succeeded in his application for a ship's arrest against the MERCHANT BRILLIANT on Thursday afternoon, in a similar case to one involving its sister ship, MERCHANT BRAVERY, last week.

The order was granted by Judge Liam McKechnie in the Admiralty Division of the High Court.

Mr Fleming, who is on secondment to the ITF from Siptu said the case was almost a "carbon copy" of the situation on MERCHANT BRAVERY.

"When I arrived on board the MERCHANT BRILLIANT this morning, the crewing agency attempted to evict the crew and when that failed they attempted to leave Dublin port. Fortunately Norfolk Line, who had chartered the ro-ro vessel, withdrew their pilot," he said.

"I understand that the crewing agency is still attempting to find a pilot in the port and I am on my way down there now to ensure the court's order is enforced. These people have a clear choice of obeying the law or continuing their efforts to frustrate it."

"If they want to remove the vessel from Dublin they can do so by honouring their debts to the crew or successfully challenging the 'arrest' of the vessel in the courts. I know from an inspection of the ship's records just how likely a legal challenge is to be successful," Mr. Fleming added.

Following intensive negotiations and a threat to seize the MERCHANT BRAVERY in Dublin Port on December 1st, four Russian seafarers were paid €49,900 in arrears, plus over €3,000 euros in expenses and fares home.

Last week, a further 19 Russian and Latvian crew members were given back pay totalling €122,971. The average payment was just over €5,000.

Siptu and the International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF) became involved after claims emerged last month that Eastern European workers aboard the vessel were earning just €2 per hour.

Crew members on MERCHANT BRAVERY were reportedly hired and told their pay would be lodged in accounts at home. However, Mr Fleming claimed earlier this month that they had later discovered "little or nothing had been paid after they were discharged".

"This sort of behaviour by crewing agencies, or other marine employers, will not be tolerated on the Irish Sea. This is exploitation on a level reminiscent of a Jack London novel from the early 1900s," he said in statement today.

LATE NEWS:

It was reported by RTÉ on the evening of Saturday December 16 that the owners of MERCHANT BRILLIANT have arrived in Dublin for talks.

MILFORD HAVEN

The Swedish-flag 18,119 dwt chemical tanker Prospero is reported to have hit a jetty at the UK port of Milford Haven, Wales, when it was coming alongside early Sunday morning causing damage to the vessel and berth. The terminal operator, SemLogistics, has described the incident, which has not caused any pollution, as a “heavy berthing”.

PORT OF CORK

KRIEGSMARINE S-130

A German warship that took part in an infamous raid at Slapton Sands in which nearly 1,000 Allied soldiers were killed is to be restored - if her British owners can get lottery funding.

S-130 - the only ship of its class left in the world - helped attack the Allied convoy in Lyme Bay, off the Devon coast, in 1944.

A group of patrolling German vessels stumbled upon the rehearsal for the D-Day landings and launched one of the most destructive raids of the Second World War.

The total number of US servicemen killed and missing was ten times the number lost during the landings on Utah beach, which was what the flotilla had been practising for during Operation Tiger.

Allied chiefs initially covered up the loss, keen to avoid making the enemy aware of what it had achieved or getting wind of any planned beach assault.

But after the war, S-130 was taken as a British war prize, and is now lying in a forlorn state in a shipyard near Plymouth - not far from where she wreaked so much havoc.

Her owners are now putting together match funding to apply for a Lottery grant towards her full-scale restoration to working order, costing £4 million.

The Schnellboot was small, fast and deadly - devised as a result of the Versailles restrictions set at the close of the First World War.

With the Germans banned from building large warships, they embarked on an ingenious naval development programme, resulting in the Schnellboots.

They were propelled by three powerful Mercedes diesel engines and could travel at 55 knots - more than 60mph - faster than any other naval vessel.

The boats had a wedge on the stern that prevented the bow from rising as it accelerated so the guns could shoot more accurately. That technology is used on US destroyers today. The S-class were 115ft long, weighed 110 tons and had a crew of between 12 and 20.

S-130 was built at the Schlichting boatyard and was commissioned on October 21, 1943. After the British took her over following the war, one of her sailors recalled in interview that as his captain surrendered, he was shot dead by an Allied officer.

Britain used the ship during the Cold War to annoy the Soviet navy and land spies behind the Iron Curtain.

Now S-130 lies rotting and could be lost if the money is not found to preserve her.

Marine historians and enthusiasts are keen to have her restored as she is regarded as a "hugely important" vessel. Stephen Walters, of the International Sailing Craft Association, which now operates her, said: "ISCA was set up in the 1960s to preserve sailing craft from around the world. More recently we've been trying to help save collections that are under threat.

"One of the collections in difficulty belonged to the British Military Powerboat Trust and among the ships was S-130. She was lying in mud and we took her to a shipyard in Plymouth where she now lies.

"But unless we can find the funds to restore her, she could well be lost.

"S-130 is not like many unique ships that have been preserved only because they never saw action - she took part in numerous operations including the Slapton disaster.

"And she was then used by the Royal Navy in the Cold War and after that was used as a test bed to help develop new engines to power our own vessels.

"She is the only one of her type left in the world and we want to return her to how she was when she was built.

"These ships were about the fastest thing on water. It is a classic example of German engineering.

"Restricted to what the scientists could build they adapted the technology to produce horrors like these boats."

Wyn Davies, a naval architect and maritime historian, said the importance of S-130 should not be underestimated.

He said: "She is the last survivor of a hugely important class of warship that gave our coastal forces quite a headache.

"They introduced several new features, the most useful of which was the use of diesel engines to power them. This ended the need for stocking inflammable petrol on board."

TORPOINT FERRY

BRITTANY FERRIES

CAIRNRYAN PORT PUBLIC INQUIRY

Moving ferries to Cairnryan port would safeguard hundreds of local jobs, a port director has claimed. Speaking at a public inquiry Alan Gordon, director of the new Port of Cairnryan Ltd, said rocketing fuel costs have made the Stranraer to Belfast ferry route uneconomical. And he claimed relocation was essential if the ferry route was to remain viable.

The inquiry into doubling the size of Cairnryan port began last Thursday at the village's community centre, and is expected to finish before Christmas. Said Mr Gordon: "The increase of over 200 per cent in fuel costs over the last five years has led to a rise in Stena's operating costs. "Fuel costs currently inherent in running the HSS vessel from Stranraer makes the route increasingly uneconomical and is threatening its commercial viability.

"The proposed move to Cairnryan will allow the HSS to operate on two small turbines rather than the four turbines currently used for approximately the same crossing time.

"This could result in a fuel savings of up to 30 percent. "P&O and Stena Line have joined to form a new company - the Port of  Cairnryan - that plans to plough £60m into expanding the port to accommodate  Stena's HSS and its conventional ferry, as well as vessels currently using the terminal.

Under proposals the port will double in size, and based on last year's  combined figures for P&O and Stena Line, could handle 1.8 million  passengers, 410,000 cars, and 377,000 lorries each year.

Once the inquiry is completed, Ministers will decide in the New Year whether  to green light the biggest port expansion in Scotland since 1945. Employing 800 people locally - 12 per cent of all jobs in Wigtownshire - the two ferry companies together are one of the biggest private sector employers in South-West Scotland.

It is also estimated that a further 166 local jobs support the ferry companies and 26 depend on tourists "passing through". The new port, said Mr Gordon, would safeguard these jobs, which pay above  the regional average.

He said: "The announcement of the port development has improved job security for the workforce.

"And the expanded port will help provide much needed economic stability in the area and help stem the tide of economic migration."As the most important sea gateway into Scotland, Loch Ryan needs to maximise its potential if it is to remain competitive and drive expansion in the future."

Peter Wood of Tribal Consultancy, who has researched into ferry-related employment in the area for the Port of Cairnryan, has claimed without the  development, big job losses would follow.

He said: "Employment will be placed at risk by a decision which prevents the proposed port development at Cairnryan.

"My overall conclusion is that failure to allow the development will place at risk over 600 local jobs in ferry operations and related businesses." As well as surging fuel costs, Stena Line claimed its future viability was being held back by the current port facilities at Stranraer, which has little potential for future expansion given its town centre location. The port infrastructure lacks a direct passenger walkway to the ships. And in the summer peak months, congestion is evident with cars queuing to get in and out of the terminal entrance.

Shallow water also means bigger vessels cannot use the harbour.

CELTIC LINK

DML DEVONPORT

Christmas sailing arrangements:

ULYSSES: Last sailing departs Holyhead at 14:10 on 24 December. Then to overhaul at H&W.

ISLE OF INISHMORE: Takes over from ULYSSES, first sailing arrives Holyhead on 27 December at 11:30.

JONATHAN SWIFT: Last sailing ex Holyhead 12:00 on 24 December, arriving back in Holyhead at 10:45 on 27 December with the morning sailing from Dublin. Refit is 4 - 16 Jan.

ACQUISITION OF F.T. EVERARD & SONS LIMITED ('FT Everard')

James Fisher the UK's leading provider of marine services announced this week that it is to acquire FT Everard for a total cash consideration of approximately £23.7 million and the assumption of £28.0 million of debt.

The acquisition to be financed through existing and new bank facilities.FT Everard currently operates 11 CPP tankers, 9 of which it owns, with four further tankers due to enter service in 2007, and owns and operates Cattedown Wharves - a port facility on the River Plym, Plymouth.

Acquisition expected to bring a number of benefits and opportunities to James Fisher including:

* the acquisition of a predominantly modern double hulled fleet;

* the anticipated cash flow benefits to enable James Fisher to accelerate the expansion of its other divisions;

* the ability to re-finance FT Everard's owned ships to reduce post acquisition financial gearing; and

* the ability to bring FT Everard's fleet into the tonnage tax regime.

* The combined tankship operations will, in future, operate under the name James Fisher Everard

* Acquisition expected to be earnings neutral in the year ending 31 December 2007 and earnings enhancing thereafter*

* Michael Everard and William Everard will join the Board of James Fisher on Completion

Commenting on the Acquisition, Tim Harris, Chairman of James Fisher, said: 'We are buying a business we know with an excellent operational reputation and which provides us with the opportunity to grow and enhance the business significantly.'

He added: 'We intend to repeat the successful tankships formula by using the strong cash flow benefits from an enlarged and integrated tankship fleet to pursue further expansion in the Company's other divisions.

The key focus for growth in the enlarged James Fisher group will remain marine support services, comprising the offshore oil,  specialist technical and defence divisions. This contributed 67% of group profits in H1 2006. I am delighted that Michael and William Everard have agreed to join the James Fisher Board on completion of the Acquisition. The Board view the prospects of the Enlarged Group with confidence.'

Michael Everard, Chairman of FT Everard, said

'My family started FT Everard in the late 1800's and through four generations we have been the owners of the company. In James Fisher we see a like minded and successful company with a refreshing and modern attitude to the operation of tankships and marine services.

We are confident that we have found the right strategic home for our company and our employees. My brother and I are delighted to join the Board of James Fisher following completion of the Acquisition and to remain involved with the business.

MAERSK GROUP

SVITZER ADSTEAM ACQUISITION

NORFOLK LINE

Siptu and the International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF) became involved after claims emerged last month that Eastern European workers aboard the vessel were earning just €2 per hour.

Norfolk Line, the company which chartered the Latvian-owned Bahmas registered cargo ferry, met with ITF inspector Ken Fleming and last week paid out €50,000 to four workers from Russia.

NORWAY / FRANCE

India's Supreme Court on Monday delayed for at least a month a decision on whether an asbestos-laden ship that was once a legendary ocean liner can be broken apart here for salvage.

The NORWAY, disabled by a boiler room explosion in the port of Miami in 2003, has become the latest high-profile vessel targeted by environmentalists. They allege that primitive conditions at ship-breaking yards in India and neighbouring countries expose workers and the environment to asbestos, PCBs and other hazards.

They also charge that the ship, which was christened the SS FRANCE when it began trans-Atlantic service in 1962, never should have left Germany, where it had been towed from Miami after the explosion. European law bans exports of ships with hazardous waste to poor countries, and activists claim that officials of the NORWAY's parent, Star Cruise Lines, lied to German officials about renovation plans before the ship was towed to Malaysia and then to India.

A letter obtained by McClatchy Newspapers indicates that at least one German parliamentarian complained in March 2005 that the NORWAY's owners planned to scrap the ship and he asked whether the asbestos would be removed before the NORWAY left Germany. The ship was towed to Malaysia two months later.

Since mid-August, the NORWAY, one of the largest passenger ships ever built, has remained aground about 4,000 feet offshore from the ship-breaking yards at Alang in the west Indian state of Gujarat, awaiting the outcome of a legal challenge to its demolition. A two-judge panel of the Supreme Court ordered the Gujarat Pollution Control Board to review a demolition plan submitted by a scrap yard, Priya Blue Industries, to see whether the plan meets the shipbreaking requirements spelled out by a court-appointed technical committee.

The justices gave the board four weeks to complete the review, though they didn't schedule another hearing until March. Priya Blue could request an earlier hearing, but that would be at the judges' discretion.

Environmentalists, who'd been hoping that the court would declare the effort to scrap the ship in India illegal, nonetheless welcomed the decision to study the issue more closely.

"I think it's a good order, because now at least they will hear us out," said Gopal Krishna, a New Delhi-based environmentalist who's involved in the case. "The outcome is neutral," said Mahesh Agarwal, an attorney for Priya Blue. Sanjay Mehta, the chairman of Priya Blue, described the order as "OK," noting that he now can expect a conclusion in four weeks.

The NORWAY was the flagship of Miami-based Norwegian Cruise Line until the boiler room accident, which killed eight crew members. Environmentalists have campaigned for several years to stop old ships from being sent to developing countries such as India for breaking. Working conditions and the handling of hazardous waste have improved at Indian ship-breaking yards, but environmentalists say the changes are insufficient.

"It is fundamentally clear that the Alang yards currently and for the foreseeable future cannot operate in an environmentally sound manner," said Ingvild Jenssen, a Europe-based activist.

Norwegian Cruise Line says that its parent company, Malaysia-based Star Cruises, didn't intend to scrap the ship when it left Germany for Malaysia, even though the company had decided in late 2004 that scrapping was the most likely option and correspondingly had reduced the value of the Norway on its books, according to a letter sent by its attorneys to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Norwegian, in a written statement in response to e-mailed questions, said the write-down of the ship's value was for accounting reasons and didn't reflect a decision to scrap the Norway. Still, at least one German parliamentarian, a member of the Green Party, was suspicious. Rainder Steenblock wrote a letter to port officials in Bremerhaven in March 2005 asking that the asbestos be removed before the ship was allowed to leave.

Officials say they can do nothing if an owner maintains that a ship isn't going to be scrapped. The NORWAY case is a "textbook example of the urgent need for more stringent regulations," said Holger Bruns, a spokesman for the construction and environment minister in Bremen, Germany, which oversees Bremerhaven port.

"As long as a ship does not appear beyond repair and the owner has not unambiguously declared an intent to scrap it, authorities cannot rule against the stated will of the owner," he said. "If the owner takes a decision after a ship leavesterritorial waters, the authorities are powerless." [Maritime Clippings]

LAST ATTEMPT TO SAVE SS FRANCE ?

A French consortium is desperately seeking funds to rescue the former trans-Atlantic liner FRANCE. The association, called Club Le France Prestige (CLFP), is hoping to raise euro100M (£133M) to recover the ship from the Indian breakers. It launched its appeal in October, and is desperately looking for new small investors to rescue what it calls "a monument". Vincent Betrenieux of CLFP said that the ship would be returned to Honfleur and used as a "hotel, restaurant, casino and special seamen's school". He admitted that the organisation is running out of time to achieve its goals. Of the euro100M, Betrenieux estimates euro25M will be needed to buy the ship, euro3M to tow the vessel back to Europe, euro12M to remove asbestos and euro8M for new paint. The rest will go on rewiring andrefitting. [MARITIME CLIPPINGS]

PASSAGE EAST CAR FERRY

Cllr. Connick put the figure at between €8m and €10m, but it was then pointed out that the car ferry company doesn't own the land where it's proposed the slipway would go so it was not simply an issue of funding.

'We're paying them enough to take out an injunction to stop these protests, they should look after their customers,' said one regular user of the service. 'If they were blocking the bridge in New Ross or Ferrybank you'd see how quickly they'd be moved on,' she added.

Cllr. Connick then suggested setting up a small working group to meet with the Passage East residents.

He said that together they could target local and national government and 'up the ante' to try get the issue resolved as the protesters were currently 'targeting the wrong people'.

Principal of Ramsgrange Community School, Liam Fardy said the Passage East Car Ferry Company had been very good to his students who use the service and 'more than generous' in some cases.

'If I was living in Passage and that many cars were coming by my door I'd have a serious axe to grind,' said Mr. Fardy.

He questioned the impact of the current protests and said that 'if the Passage East residents are serious about this let them go block the bridge in New Ross or Waterford and we'll go with them'.

'If you want something you hit people where it hurts,' said Mr. Fardy, adding that Waterford and Wexford County Councils and FBD, who own 85 per cent of the car ferry company, were the crucial players.

Talk of blocking the bridge in New Ross gave Cllr. Connick palpitations and he described it as 'the nuclear option'.

He said that representatives of the ferry company, TDs, County Councillors and County Managers should all come together on it and make representations to the appropriate Government Ministers.

'If that fails then we could do the things you're talking about,' said Cllr. Connick.

Mr. Fardy then question the wisdom of people going on radio shows and inflaming the situation and urged them to go through 'the proper procedures' with their grievances.

'The people of Passage and Ballyhack are pawns in a game, the politicians are there to do a job, let them sort it out,' said the Ramsgrange Principal.

Fine Gael's Larry O'Brien said 'half the people' in cars waiting for the ferry to come across to Passage East did not switch off their engines and that a lot of local residents couldn't even get out of their homes.

'They're so frustrated about it at this stage they can't do anything about it, but protest,' he said, urging people to support their efforts to secure a new slipway. [NEW ROSS STANDARD]

STENA LINE

Christmas sailing arrangements - Holyhead services:

STENA LINE

Belfast - Stranraer and Holyhead - Dun Laoghaire HSS sailings cancelled. The STENA CALEDONIA cancelled - she did operate her early morning roundtrip ex Belfast but on return mid-morning the decision was taken not to operate any further sailings.

IRISH FERRIES

JONATHAN SWIFT Holyhead - Dublin high speed service was cancelled.

NORMANDY's 16:00 ex Rosslare Wednesday arrived in France around 2.5 hours late. The ISLE OF INISHMORE also appeared to be running very late and to catch up the 08:45 / 14:30 sailings on Friday were cancelled

P&O Irish Sea

Larne - Cairnryan sailings delayed.

Celtic Link

This appears on their website - it appears the 22:00 ex Cherbourg on Wednesday night was cancelled and an amended schedule introduced for the rest of the week: Ex Cherbourg Thursday @ 12:00hrs arriving in Rosslare Friday @ 10:00hrs Ex Rosslare Friday @ 16:00hrs arriving in Cherbourg Saturday @ 12:00hrs Ex Cherbourg Saturday @ 20:00hrs arriving in Rosslare Sunday @ 15:00hrs Ex Rosslare Sunday @ 19:00hrs arriving in Cherbourg Monday @ 13:00hrs Ex Cherbourg Monday @ 17:00hrs arriving in Rosslare Tuesday @ 12:00hrs Normal Schedule Resumes Tuesday 5 December 2006