The highly anticipated and promised foot-ferry service from Nanaimo to Vancouver will not be ready to set sail this summer.
“It’s a disappointment,” said David Marshall, director of operations with Island Ferries.
The main hold-up, Marshall says, is that the last piece of financing the company was expecting back in April did not come through.
Island Ferries has been actively working since then to replace that last piece of financing.
“We are working actively with two potential investment partners,” said Marshall. “We expect one of those to be successful and allow us to deliver this service.”
However, significant progress has been made in delivering the service.
Two ships are currently under construction and are secured and reserved for Island Ferries.
Negotiations with Translink, Nanaimo Port Authority and Vancouver Fraser Port Authority are also complete.
The harbour-to-harbour catamaran service has been in the works for years.
The company hoped to launch last summer, but a similar delay was announced in June 2018. At the time, Island Ferries said it ran into regulatory roadblocks and called the project a "complex, expensive undertaking with many moving parts."
Marshall said as soon as Island Ferries has financing arranged, it will make an announcement on an opening date.
