Really!? When taking into account the overall cost of ownership - I very much doubt it! I'm sorry that it isn't cheaper, but I hope that it succeeds (and that they have lots of special offers! ?)
Really?
from meFrom a men in suits thinking about share holders perspective I'm sure you're right. But I expect its entirely feasible if looked at in another way. Money wise it depends on how much debt they are in, if they took out a huge loan it won't work. If the boat is paid off already, donated, or by some sort of WEF 2030 green agenda grant then a few trips a week would cover running costs. Then its crew wages, if the skipper and maybe some crew lives aboard and doesn't have to pay an insanely out of proportion to average earnings mortgage for a house to the banking cartel he might not need much cash wages. There are loads of people in this country preferring to live in yurts and vans than bend over to the banksters for a brick home, or they have no choice. There are desperate city kids willing to "work on organic farms for free", essentially submit themselves to what looks like cotton picking slavery, working just for subsistence and no money. The ones I've met at a place I know who does it are usually kids looking for meaning and escape rather than dedicated to organic farming. They'd get something out of it usually, some experience and knowledge, make some contacts, if nothing else just time in the country. They'd crew for Greta for food and a bunk, work up some experience and who knows, get a commercial skippering qualification perhaps. If the organisers were plugged into the volunteering world and the world of over excited extinction rebellionists I expect this is feasible.
It will fail if the aim is to like for like replace diesel ferries. If the aim is to make profit it will fail. If the aim is to show that its a realistic way to get masses of people across the channel on time it will fail. If the aim is to have a costs covered by green investors with an agenda, taking a few dozen people across each day in the summer months and posturing as the beginnings of a realistic solution to give something for the WEF to point to while they ban us plebs using carbon fuels, extolling the virtues of a "green future" that will trap us in smart pods eating bugs, it will succeed. I stayed on a hippy commune (not really that but close enough for you to get the idea) for a while as some friends where there, an "eco living example space". They were making out its the future that all people need to follow but actually its so inefficient it would probably need culling of 90% of people and that is where the hair shirt and the business shirt happily intersect. Extinction rebellion means just that if you dig down to what their ideas would necessitate. But ignoring all that underlies it for £85 it should be a interesting day out. If I was that side of the country I would sign up right now.