Channel Islands ferries: What is the story so far?

Guernsey picked Brittany Ferries to operate its services for the next 15 years but Jersey is yet to decide

Condor Ferries has been serving both of the largest Channel Islands for 60 years, but that could soon change after Jersey delayed its decision on which firm would run its ferry services from March.

Following a tendering process Guernsey has picked Brittany Ferries, Condor's parent company, to run its services for 15 years.

Condor turned down Jersey's offer of a seven-month extension to its current contract and rival bidder DFDS said it was willing to step in and operate the routes.

Condor's previous agreements with both islands are set to end in March 2025, so both governments started thinking about the tender process for the next 15 years back in 2023.

The plan was to have the process completed by the end of September 2024, but that did not happen.

Condor's previous agreements with both islands are due to expire in March 2025

At the start of the year, the Government of Jersey and States of Guernsey gave bidders a schedule of how the tender process would work:

22 July: Shortlisting notification

29 July to 12 August: Clarifications and negotiation period

12 August: Invitation to submit final tender issued

19 to 26 August: Evaluation period

2 to 12 September: Unsuccessful bidders informed

2 to 23 September: Finalising agreement period

30 September: Final contract award date

Guernsey announced Brittany Ferries as its preferred bidder a month later than originally planned.

Jersey opted to delay its choice, with mixed messages about who knew what and when, and then launched a new tender process.

What is the timeline of events?

In April 2023, the States of Guernsey helped Condor purchase its new ferry - the Condor Islander - which it said was to protect the island's supply chain.

Later the same year the States refused to rule out it was in talks to buy a stake in Condor.

In December, DFDS ran trials using its ferry the Finlandia in the harbours in St Helier and St Peter Port as part of contingency planning funded by both islands.

While the trial in St Helier was deemed a success, the ferry made contact with a wall in St Peter Port harbour as it left.

In January 2024, Jersey and Guernsey announced a joint tender process to run their ferry services for the next 15 years, with the successful operator planned to operate the routes from spring 2025.

DFDS said it would be happy to run a Jersey-only ferry service

Danish firm DFDS revealed it planned to bid to take over the routes and it held public meetings asking islanders what they wanted from their ferry service.

The tender bidding process formally began on 15 May, with Guernsey's government promising an "open and impartial" process.

Current operator Condor confirmed its intention to bid.

A potential bidder - Stena Line - announced it was pulling out of the process, citing competing priorities and the routes did not align with its business model.

Maritime business expert Alf Baird said the tender process favoured Condor as the incumbent.

The first of the self-imposed deadlines - to inform shortlisted companies by 22 July - passed without the firms being notified.

In August, the BBC learned Irish Ferries had also placed a bid.

The following month, as Brittany Ferries became the majority shareholder in Condor, DFDS ran successful trials of its ships in Guernsey and Jersey.

Guernsey picks Brittany Ferries

In October one of Jersey's senior civil servants withdrew from any involvement in the tender process after he took part in an online poll asking Facebook users to pick their preferred ferry company.

The government said it was an "inadvertent mistake", but Jersey warned its decision could be delayed until November because of the resignation.

This prompted Brittany Ferries to warn tourists would go elsewhere if the decision was delayed, while a consumer group urged decision makers to "hurry up".

On 30 October, Guernsey announced it had picked Brittany Ferries as its preferred company to run its ferry routes.

Jersey's government initially said it had only heard about Guernsey's decision when a press release was published, with Jersey's Economic Development Minister Kirsten Morel saying it was "not a good look".

However, Guernsey Deputy Neil Inder said Jersey had been told the plans two weeks before the decision was announced.

Jersey offered Condor a seven-month extension to give the government more time to decide an operator

Jersey offered Condor a seven-month extension to its contract to give its government more time to decide, but Condor rejected the offer, saying it was "surprised and disappointed".

The uncertainty led to a standby ferry, the MV Arrow, which was part of contingency arrangements costing Jersey and Guernsey a combined €700,000 (£580,000) a month.

Guernsey's States said a Guernsey-only ferry service could meet its needs, while DFDS said it would be interested in providing a Jersey-only service.

However, a Guernsey tourism group said having different ferry providers for each island would be "unworkable".

Jersey's government said it would be starting a shortened Jersey-only tender process with a decision expected by the end of the month, but this was then delayed, with Morel saying he expected a decision to be made early in December.

Morel came under pressure, with deputies demanding to grill him over the handling of the previous tender process.

Timetable published

Morel defended the delay, saying it was in the island's best interests, and adding that he would approach DFDS to run Jersey's ferry service on an interim basis.

On 22 November, Brittany Ferries published its 2025 timetable for Guernsey.

The company said it would only sail to Jersey once a week from late March, down from one or more sailings a day in recent years, which the States of Guernsey said was "not yet optimal".

The new schedule also received criticism from a former harbour master for the lack of a backup for the fast ferry.

The company said it would run a daily, high-speed service between the island, St Malo and Poole, a move cautiously welcomed by local business leaders.

As for who will operate Jersey's ferry services from March, a decision is expected early in December.