A remote South Atlantic island has benefited from the work of a marine company based on Portland.

Manor Marine has completion the build of a cargo-carrying pontoon for the Ascension Island Government.

The project helped sustain the 50 strong work force at the site on Portland, along with four apprentices who are currently training for the firm.

Construction of the pontoon commenced in February 2023 and the pontoon has been delivered on schedule and is the fifth pontoon built for the Ascension Island Government.

A government supply vessel took approximately six weeks to ship the pontoon which sailed from Marchwood Port in Southampton.

Leif Cooper, Managing Director at Manor Marine commented, “We’re pleased to have been able to deliver another successful build for the Ascension Island Government, who have been a pleasure to work with throughout this project.

"The quality of the construction from the team at Manor Marine was to a high standard and was delivered within the agreed schedule.”

Ascension Island is a small British territory in the middle of the south Atlantic Ocean.  It is about 1,000 miles from the coast of Africa and 1,400 miles from the coast of South America.

The new 17-metre self-propelled barge is commissioned for shipping to and use in the the island's waters.

The previous pontoons fabricated for the Ascension Island Government at the Manor Marine shipyard were also commissioned for the same purpose.

The island is also home to an RAF base, a European Space Agency rocket tracking station, a British-American signals intelligence facility, the BBC World Service Atlantic Relay Station, and was a staging point for the British military during the Falklands War.

 Manor Marine has been supplying  services and specialist skills in ship building, repair and conversion, marine engineering and fabrication for more than  30 years.

In 2017, Manor Renewable Energy Ltd acquired the Manor Marine shipyard on Portland which has become the company headquarters.