Ok lets look at this a different way.
The government awarded a total of £107m, most of that, (£94m,) was awarded to well established ferry companies.
Seabourne would only have got the money if they had actually provided a ferry service, so no money has been given to a company without ferries.
Maybe they took a punt on Seabourne because if they had provided a ferry service it would have brought back into operation another cross channel ferry port, providing an alternative to Dover and jobs in an area not known for its wealth employment opportunities. It is also the closest port to Manston the place they’re planning to hold many of the trucks if there are problems.
As for Seabourne, it appears at the time of being told they could have the money they were actually linked to a company that does operate, charter and manage ships, although none of them seem to be ferries, now they’re not linked with them, the offer has been pulled.