Cenargo placed into administration

Ferries and logistics group Cenargo International has been placed into administration, it was announced today.

Ernst & Young has been appointed administrator to the firm and certain subsidiary companies with a view to “reconstructing those companies’ finances”, the accountancy firm said.

Michael Rollings, of E&Y, said: “We are keen to see the administrations achieve the survival of the companies, which are continuing to trade as normally as the circumstances allow.

“In particular, the Norse Merchant Ferries sailings between England and Ireland are operating as usual.

“We are in discussions with the various stakeholders involved and will be presenting proposals to them shortly.”

Cenargo, based at Puttenham in Surrey, was founded as a shipbroking company in 1979 and bought its first vessels, three roll-on/roll-off freight ferries, in 1982.

For many years, its core business was owning deep-sea dry cargo vessels but the firm recently focused on developing its shipbroking and ship operating, freight and passenger ferry, and logistics operations.

Its Merchant Ferries operation runs three routes between the UK and Ireland, while its Norse Irish Ferries runs a passenger/freight service between Liverpool and Belfast.

The group has a yearly turnover of around €136m.