A new ferry service could be underway next year between the port of Ramsgate and the Belgian port of Ostend.

The possibility of a new service was reported by Belgian TV which quoted the Belgian Mayor Johan Vande Lanotte saying in a statement: “The Board of Management of the Port of Ostend has reached a basic agreement with Seaborne freight for the launch of a new RoRo line Oostende- Ramsgate, which is due to start on March 1, 2018.”

“It is a guided freight, ie lorry drivers who cross the Channel with their freight.The intention is that three ships will be deployed with six departures a day.”

“With regard to employment, 60 people will be able to get started. There is an option to do passenger transport later on, but only during the big vacation.”

The news - if confirmed - will be a fillip for the area as no ferry service has operated from the port since 2013 after the collapse of ferry operator TransEuropa, which left the council with unpaid berthing fees of £3.4m.

A spokesman for Thanet council would not be drawn on the reports but confirmed it was continuing to look for operators.

"Over the last two years, Thanet District Council has been working on re-establishing ferry services at the Port of Ramsgate. There are ongoing discussions with several parties to consider the future of a potential ferry operation across various routes. No agreements have been signed."

Ramsgate is the second closest UK port to the continent with capacity to handle up to 500,000 road goods vehicles per annum.

Earlier this year, the council appointed Robert Hardy of Paradox Consulting an expert in shipping to its Port of Ramsgate team.

In August, it emerged that a Polish ferry company was in talks with Thanet council about possible services from the Port of Ramsgate.

Polferries operates passenger and cargo operator in its country and runs services across the Baltic Sea between Poland and Scandinavia.