Frustration mounting as return of N.S.-P.E.I. ferry service delayed yet again

It will be beyond mid-October before ferry service between Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia is restored, and the chamber of commerce serving eastern P.E.I. is growing increasingly concerned.

The seasonal service across the Northumberland Strait was shut down nine days ago following engine problems with MV Saaremaa, which is being leased from Quebec's ferry service for a third season.

That news came on the heels of MV Confederation colliding with the wharf on Sept. 15, leaving a hole in the bow visor and making the passenger and vehicle ferry inoperable.

"It's frustrating. I don't know what else to say. That came out of the blue," said Blair Aitken, the president of the Eastern P.E.I. Chamber of Commerce, in the wake of Tuesday's announcement.

Northumberland Ferries had hoped to have Saaremaa back in service as early as Wednesday, but in a news release Tuesday morning, the company said the earliest return would be Oct. 19.

The ferry has four main engines, two eight-cylinder and two six-cylinder. The problems had been in the six-cylinder engines, but during repair operations all four engines were examined.

With no ferries operating to and from the southeastern end of the Island, the only way for commercial and passenger vehicles to cross to the mainland is via the Confederation Bridge to New Brunswick. (Carolyn Ryan/CBC)

"Additional issues have been discovered on the two eight-cylinder variants," NFL general manager Jeff Joyce said in the release. "These issues would impact the ongoing reliability and performance of the vessel and must be rectified prior to the vessel being deemed fit for operations by the regulatory authorities."

The current timeline for Saaremaa's return to service on Oct. 19 is dependent on further inspections and certifications.

Complicating matters, the lease contract with the Société des traversiers du Québec specifies that the Saaremaa is to finish service on the P.E.I. route by around Oct. 24 to be back in Quebec by Oct. 26.

Confederation work begins

Officials initially said Confederation would be out of service until at least the end of September, but Northumberland Ferries also provided an update on those repairs Tuesday, saying the bow visor was removed from the ship and prepared for repair at the CME shipyard in Pictou over the weekend.

"The current expectation is that the repairs, replacement, testing, and certifying process will take 10 weeks, with two shifts of welders and repair teams working 24/7 at the shipyard," Joyce said in the news release.

Repairs to Confederation's bow visor cannot be completed before Dec. 9, the company said Tuesday. (Stacey Janzer/CBC)

That would make the earliest return-to-service date for Confederation Dec. 9, about 10 days before the service is scheduled to shut down for the winter season.

Transport Canada owns the Confederation and other ships that have been used on the Nova Scotia-P.E.I. run, but Northumberland Ferries is responsible for operating them. The Saaremaa was drafted into service after the government-owned MV Holiday Island caught fire and was heavily damaged as it approached P.E.I. in July 2022.

The federal government has bought a Norwegian ferry to fill the gap until a new ferry still in the design stages can be built. However, a Transport Canada spokesman said in early September that MV Fanafjord's delivery "has been pushed to late fall due to essential work by the shipyard."

On Tuesda, Aitken said Northumberland Ferries had called the chamber asking for a meeting in the afternoon. Apart from once again expressing frustration, he said he would have some hard questions for the company.

The main ones: "What can be expected down the road in terms of a reliable service and how can you bring back the confidence of the travelling public?"

While politicians keep telling people about how important the service is, Aitken said the chamber is having trouble getting answers to basic questions.

'It's frustrating. I don't know what else to say,' says Blair Aitken, president of the Eastern P.E.I. Chamber of Commerce. (Tony Davis/CBC)

That includes questions about the new ferry. It was announced in 2019 and currently due to be delivered in 2028. Is design for it ready yet?

Aitken has also heard rumours about problems with the retrofit of the Fanafjord. Are the rumours true? When will the Fanafjord be sailing the Northumberland Strait?

May use ship without damaged visor

Meanwhile, Joyce said the ferry company is exploring another option to get Confederation back in service.

"Due to the high importance of service recovery, NFL is fast tracking the possibility of temporarily and safely returning MV Confederation to service without one bow visor," said Joyce.

"We believe we will be in a position to determine the feasibility of this by the end of the week but there is considerable work to do in terms of both our internal and external approvals."

Joyce said the operator has tried to find a temporary replacement for the service, but found no boats available.