THE Economic Development Minister has played down the impact of the departure of Condor Ferries’ chief executive.
It was confirmed on Wednesday that John Napton was stepping down from the role and would be replaced on an interim basis by Christophe Mathieu, chief executive of Brittany Ferries, which is part of the consortium which owns Condor.
The departure of Mr Napton, who had been in his position for two-and-a-half years, came after Condor suffered a tumultuous end to 2023 when it faced a backlash over a near 19% hike in freight costs and speculation about its financial status.
Reacting to this week’s news, Economic Development Minister Kirsten Morel said: “I am looking forward to working with the new chief executive, and nothing changes in the sense that we are still working towards agreement with a ferry operator beyond 2025.”
Mr Mathieu, who is a long-term board member of Condor, will take over leading negotiations for a new joint operating agreement between the firm and the governments of Jersey and Guernsey.
Currently, Condor has an operating agreement with Jersey which expires next year, but only a memorandum of understanding with Guernsey.
