DUN LAOGHAIRE, Ireland, July 1, 2011 /PRNewswire/ —

Stena Line has expressed its delight at the announcement that
its acquisition of the DFDS routes from Belfast to Liverpool
(Birkenhead) and Belfast to Heysham has been fully approved by the
Competition Commission.

The acquisition, which amounts to approximately £40M investment,
will enable Stena
Line to improve its service on the Irish Sea by offering
several different alternatives for transportation between Northern
Ireland and Great Britain and will improve service and frequency
for passengers and freight.

Irish Sea Area Director Michael McGrath said: “We are naturally
delighted to have been given the green light by the UK Competition
Commission and will now engage in a process of evaluation and
integration in terms of the wider Stena Line business. We
have always believed that the DFDS acquisition would make a perfect
fit for our business and our customers and we are looking forward
to implementing our extended route network on the Irish Sea. We
believe that the acquisition also strengthens Belfast as a key
transport hub within our route network for both freight and tourism
traffic.”

As part of the deal Stena Line will also acquire four ships from
DFDS which will include the chartered Lagan Seaways and Mersey
Seaways on the Belfast–Liverpool route and the freight carriers
Scotia Seaways and Hibernia Seaways. This will bring the number of
Stena Line routes on the Irish Sea to six, adding to the existing
Stranraer-Belfast, Holyhead-Dublin, Holyhead-Dun Laoghaire and
Fishguard-Rosslare ferry
routes.

About Stena Line:

Stena Line is the market leader on the Irish Sea, offering the
biggest fleet and the widest choice of routes between Britain and
Ireland, including the Stranraer to Belfast, Holyhead to Dublin
Port, Holyhead to Dun Laoghaire, Fishguard to Rosslare and the two
new routes recently acquired from DFDS namely Liverpool to
Belfast and Heysham to Belfast. The company carries over two
million passengers on its Irish Sea routes each year, more than its
rival ferry operators combined.

PR Contact:
Eamonn Hewitt
Communications and PR Manager Irish Sea
Stena Line
The Ferry Terminal
Dun Laoghaire
Co. Dublin
+353-1-2047617
http://www.stenaline.co.uk

SOURCE Stena Line