Isle of Wight ferry firm Red Funnel (RF) recorded a loss of £32 million in the last financial year and ran 2,000 fewer sailings, latest figures show.
Annual accounts for 2024 reveal the company’s earnings fell by 14.5 per cent to £9.9 million.
Turnover, meanwhile, decreased by just under two per cent, to just shy of £60 million.
Overall, RF saw a £32.4 million loss in 2024, although this is an improvement on the £195 million deficit recorded in 2023.
During the year, the highest paid director received £248,000, down from £299,000 the year previous.
Pension contributions for that individual did rise from £11,000 to £26,000, however.
The figures come a month after the ratification of RF’s sale to private equity firm Njord Partners.
Njord has already committed to providing £1.5 million in fresh funding and reducing RF’s bank debt, according to the accounts.
On November 28, Njord decreased this debt from £118.1m to £52.6m, and has pledged to reduce this by a further £15 million in January.
Njord has confirmed it will provide, or procure the provision of, enough financial support to secure RF’s future for at least the next 12 months.
On the water, punctuality of sailings did improve from 92.8 per cent to 93.2 per cent, but Red Funnel ran almost 2,000 fewer sailings compared to the previous year.
On the Red Jet, passenger numbers increased by 0.4 per cent, while the car ferry saw private vehicle levels fall by around seven per cent.
Adverse weather impacting sailings; strong competition for tourism elsewhere, including the Euros and the Olympics; and technical disruption on the vehicle ferry fleet, were listed as key factors in the company’s yearly performance.
