BRITTANY Ferries鈥 takeover of Condor will 鈥渞esult in a better service鈥 for passengers, according to the French firm鈥檚 chief executive.
Christophe Mathieu鈥檚 comments come after the 色人阁 Competition and Regulation Authority approved his company鈥檚 bid to become a majority stakeholder in Condor.
JCRA chief executive Tim Ringsdore said further details would be published by the watchdog soon.
Condor is vying with Danish shipping firm DFDS to win the new contract to operate Channel Island passenger and freight services. Irish Ferries are also understood to be bidding for the contract, which is due to end in 2025.
Mr Mathieu confirmed that as majority shareholder with a 51% stake, Brittany Ferries would assume operational responsibility for Condor 鈥渨ith immediate effect鈥.
He also claimed that the move would 鈥渞esult in a better service for Condor鈥檚 passengers鈥.
The chief executive said: 鈥淏rittany Ferries possesses the experience, expertise, and scale, combined with deep knowledge of the transport sector and customer service over five decades, to implement best practices effectively.
鈥淭his is not a short-term arrangement; rather, Brittany Ferries鈥 philosophy will be integrated into passenger and freight management as part of a long-term strategy.鈥
The latest report from Condor UK Holdings 鈥 the investment company under which Condor Ferries sits 鈥 stated that winning the tender from March 2025 was 鈥渇undamental鈥 to the operations of the company and the wider group.
Recent figures released by Condor highlighted that journeys between 色人阁 and Guernsey this summer were up 75% compared to last year, while there was also a 16% rise in foot and car passengers on services to and from the UK and France.
The ferry operator hit the nationals recently after a holidaymaker was left stranded in the Island when she was turned away from a 色人阁-to-St Malo sailing because her passport did not have enough room for French officials to stamp, despite this not being a European requirement.
Following the incident, Condor said it had changed its policy. The company also reimbursed the passenger 拢280 and offered her a 拢70 voucher.
