There’s big news for Cork Harbour and the South this morning as a new ferry company is set to greatly increase our connectivity with the continent.

It has been a while coming, with CorkBeo exclusively revealing the plans being made by new company Hibernia Line to disrupt the market when we reported on it at the end of 2024. A company controlled by ‘beef baron’ Larry Goodman and his family is reported to have invested €20m to cover initial start-up costs for a service that could offer huge benefits to the agri-sector and to exports from Munster directly to France.

Now the highly ambitious plan – a direct freight and passenger service between Ringaskiddy and Boulogne-sur-Mer, south of the giant port of Calais in northern France – is going to become a reality with the first sailings from the middle of June.

The company will announce full details of the new service to start later this year at the official launch next week. CEO Aidan Coffey, with extensive experience in logistics and freight, will unveil his plans for the excitng new service.

It will be the first direct ‘RoPax’ freight and passenger ferry service between Cork and the Northeastern French port of Boulogne-sur-Mer, with passenger and freight services to commence in mid-June 2026.

Hibernia Line will operate six evening departures per week in both directions between the port of Ringaskiddy & Boulogne-sur-Mer, providing year-round direct access between Ireland and mainland Europe, acting as an alternative to the U.K. landbridge for freight, while offering a new option for passengers.

It will be a boon for holidaymakers travelling to the continent – but the bigger impact is expected to be in direct trade between Cork, Munster and northern France, with major opportunities for Munster’s food producers and sectors like brewing and distilling, to send their goods direct to a potentially huge market.

CorkBeo will have further details on this new service as they are announced.

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