TALKS are drawing to a close on a £20-30 million deal to buy Heysham Port.

Mersey Docks and Harbour Company (MDHC) is believed to have made the bid to consolidate their position as the dominant force in the Irish Sea.

Heysham is currently owned by Sea Containers, the Bermuda-based group that runs the Seacat and SuperSeacat services.

Both businesses already enjoy close ties but their are concerns that if the takeover takes place then the recently established services to Belfast could be switched to Liverpool where facilities are being extensively upgraded.

Heysham handles around 4 million tonnes of cargo annually compared with 30 million plus at Liverpool but the MDHC are keen to acquire Heysham's key strategic position with services to Ireland, Isle of Man and Stranraer.

A successful deal would make MDHC the lead player in the Irish Sea for freight and passenger operations and in the summer they acquired the Irish company Marine Terminals for £20 million.

Negotiations started in October 2000 and it is thought a deal could be announced before the end of January, 2001.

A reduction in capacity at Heysham Port would further weaken calls for the Western Bypass, which cites the continued expansion of Heysham Port as a keynote argument to build the M6 road link.

Last year Heysham enjoyed record numbers of people using the port for journeys to Northern Ireland.