Irish Ferries’ Owner Sees Decreased Profits in H1 2023

Irish Continental Group, the owner of Irish Ferries, reported a pre-tax profit of €14 million for the first half of this year, a 9.1% decrease compared to the same period last year. Despite this, revenues remained stable at €264 million, with a modest increase of 0.3%. The Irish Ferries division saw a 7.1% increase in revenues, reaching €179.8 million. Net debt also decreased by €6.6 million from the beginning of the year, standing at €164.5 million. These results were attributed to the return of normal travel patterns after the pandemic and the expansion of the group’s Dover to Calais route. Furthermore, the group transported 229,200 vehicles in the first half of 2023, representing a 7% increase in car carryings. Passenger numbers also rose by 22.1% to 1.1 million, while freight carryings experienced a 5.5% growth and revenues increased by 2.6% in this division. However, the number of containers handled at the group’s Dublin and Belfast terminals decreased by 7.5% to 152,500. The shipping of containers also dropped by almost 16% to 142,300 in the period, which was primarily caused by weakness in the deep-sea market and low export and import levels in China. Despite these challenges, fuel costs decreased by 15.5% to €49 million due to reduced consumption and declining global prices. Overall, costs in the first half of the year increased by 7.6% to €174.5 million. The chairman of Irish Continental Group, John B. McGuckian, expressed caution about the timing of a recovery in container shipping volumes and potential cost increases arising from environmental levies. Nevertheless, he remained confident about the company’s future prospects, citing the strength of the business model, the diversity of income flows, and a solid balance sheet. The company declared an interim dividend of 4.87 cents per share.