Isle of Sark Shipping look to increase business areas

TENDERING for cruise ships and wildlife tours along Guernsey's southeast coast are two new business areas being introduced by Isle of Sark Shipping, it has announced.

Director Colin Smith said both were positive steps forward for the company, which made a loss of £343,000 in 2012 – attributed to a one-off investment in the company's IT system and maintenance to its ships.

It follows a public meeting to give Sark residents an opportunity to discuss IOSS's latest accounts.

Mr Smith, pictured, said islanders had been very supportive of the company, which has predicted it will return to profit this year and in 2014.

'People spoke very positively about the company and came up with a lot of ideas,' he said.

'There are things we have agreed to go away and think about.'

This included introducing reduced ticket pricing for residents – once Chief Pleas was able to define what a 'Sark resident' was – and investigating a reduced freight charge for Sark produce being shipped to Guernsey.

Mr Smith was also optimistic about the company's new business ventures.

'We've predicted we will be tendering for 14 cruise liners this year and no less than 11 in 2014,' he said.

'We think this will be a very successful area of new revenue.'

He was unable to predict how much extra income this would generate at this stage.

'The other thing we are looking to do is to start wildlife coastal cruises on the southeast coast of Guernsey,' he said.

'This will start in the next two-to- three weeks, with one cruise each week lasting for two hours.

'As with tendering for the cruise liners this will be timetabled around our regular sailings.'

IOSS currently owns three passenger ships and one cargo ship.

Mr Smith said the debt for the purchase of these vessels would be paid off over the next three years, providing the opportunity to consider buying new vessels.

'Things are changing all the time – over the next three years we will have to think carefully about how we can replace our vessels, what's available and what types of vessel would work,' he said.

He added any purchase would be made on a loan or lease basis.