Two Hayling Island passenger ferries up for sale

The proposed joint administrators of Hayling Ferry Limited has instructed Cuthbert & Kingsley to sell two passenger ferries.

Hayling Ferry is to sell Pride of Hayling and Tina Marie, which provided a daily ferry service between Hayling Island and Portsmouth in the UK.

Manufactured in 1987 and refurbished in 2014, Pride of Hayling is an 11m passenger ferry with an aluminium hull, twin drop-down loading ramps, an enclosed cabin and open seating. The custom-built 20 tonne ferry is powered by twin Perkins Sabre 130HP diesel engines and has capacity for 63 passengers and two crew members. She has been classified by the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) as a V-class, mode 2 vessel, while her MCA safety certification is valid until 3 December 2019.

Also up for sale is Tina Marie, a 12m passenger ferry with a glass reinforced plastic hull that can carry up to 12 passengers and a pilot. Previously believed to be a tender vessel for navy ship HMS Illustrious, Tina Marie has been certified as a V-class boat by the MCA.

“The asking price for Pride of Hayling is £75,000, while Tina Marie is on sale for £7,500,” said Tim Chapman from Cuthbert & Kingsley. “We will sell the boats for the maximum amount to help the creditors of the company.”

Hayling Ferry has operated the ferry route for the past 30 years, but ran into financial difficulties after losing customers while the ferry service was out of action for a prolonged period of time in 2014. The service, which closed on 27 March, had been subsidised entirely by Hampshire County Council after Portsmouth City Council withdrew its £10,000-a-year funding last year.

“The ferry service has been operating for the many years and provided a valuable ferry link for schoolchildren and daily commuters travelling between Hayling Island and Portsmouth,” said Chapman. “Many of these passengers now face a 32-mile roundtrip, rather than a three-minute ferry ride, so Hampshire County Council may want to strike a service agreement with the new owners. However, we would also be happy to sell to parties that are interested in using the boats for other purposes.”

There has already been interest from potential buyers in Scotland, the UK, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, some of whom plan to resume the ferry service and some who have proposed different uses for the vessels.

Any buyers wanting to resume the ferry service will need to establish an agreement with Hampshire County Council.

For more information about the vessels and the ferry service or to arrange an inspection, contact Tim Chapman via e-mail or +44 7508909961.