Ship will be the fourth to be delivered to Stena Line
The seventh vessel in the Stena E-Flexer class has been floated out at the China Merchants Jinling shipyard in Weihai. The vessel, which carries the yard number W0270 and is yet to be named, is the first of two 240m long MkII variants for Stena Line.
The launching ceremony for the new ferry took place on May 24, with the ship leaving the building dock the following day. Despite the latest ship being the largest to-date, she was also the quickest to be assembled so-far. Her keel was laid, along with those for the next two ships in the series, on October 14, 2020. Block assembly started during February 2021 and was completed in just 105 days according to the shipyard.
The ship remains on schedule despite problems encountered during assembly. As a result of the Suez Canal being blocked the stern shafts were delayed and only cleared customs over the May Day holiday. There were also personnel issues earlier in the year, with workers unable to reach the shipyard due to adverse weather.
W0270 is scheduled to be delivered in May 2022, with an identical sister to follow in November the same year. Stena Line has yet to announce which route the pair will be deployed on. The company has said that the name and route should be announced before the end of the year.
New DFDS ferry leaves for Europe
Separately, DFDS’s CÔTE D’OPALE has left the Weihai shipyard and begun her journey to the Dover Straits. The vessel is being brought to Europe by a Stena (Northern Marine Management) crew though there are some DFDS officers onboard. CÔTE D’OPALE was the fifth vessel in the E-Flexer series to be delivered. The next delivery will be Brittany Ferries’ SALAMANCA which is currently being fitted out.
Stena E-Flexer Mk I vs Mk II Comparison
| Class name | Stena E-Flexer Mk I (standard – 215m) | Stena E-Flexer Mk II (lengthened – 240m) |
| Design | Stena AB / Deltamarin | Stena AB / Deltamarin |
| Construction Yard | AVIC Weihai, Shandong Province, China | AVIC Weihai, Shandong Province, China |
| Vessel Owner | Stena RoRo | Stena RoRo |
| Vessel Operators | Stena Line (3), Brittany Ferries (3), DFDS (1) | Stena Line (2) |
| Delivery | Late 2019 – 2023 | 2022 |
| Length | 214.5m | 239.7m |
| Breadth | 27.8m | 27.8m |
| Draught | 6.4m | 6.4m |
| Gross Tonnage | Approx 40,500 | Approx 45,000 |
| Total number of decks | 10 | 10 |
| Number of passenger decks | 3 | 3 |
| Design Speed | 22 knots | 22 knots (?) |
| Approx. Passenger Capacity (including crew) | 1000 | 1200 |
| Freight Capacity | 3100 lane metres* | 3600 lane metres |
| Capacity of dedicated passenger vehicle and small van deck (*not included on the Brittany Ferries examples) | 120 | 200 |
