PEI·NewThe federal government originally said a replacement for MV Holiday Island would be finished by 2027, then pushed the date back to 2028. Now, Transport Canada is no longer saying when the ship can be expected.Federal government originally promised it would be ready by 2027Marilee Devries · CBC News · Posted: Oct 24, 2025 4:03 PM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hour agoListen to this articleEstimated 4 minutesMV Northumberland started sailing between Caribou, N.S., and Wood Islands, P.E.I., last May after Transport Canada bought the ship from Norway. It was formerly called MV Fanafjord. (CBC)The arrival date for a brand new ferry that will run between Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia has been pushed back again.The federal government originally said a replacement for MV Holiday Island — which had to be scrapped after it caught fire just over three years ago — would be finished by 2027, then pushed the date back to 2028. Transport Canada, which owns the vessel and is overseeing the build, is now no longer saying when the ship can be expected.The new ferry is being built at the Chantier Davie shipyard in Quebec and was announced in the 2019 federal budget as one of two replacement ferries for eastern Canada. The other will replace MV Madeleine, which runs between the Magdalen Islands and Souris, P.E.I.“Although initial timelines were developed, they were revised as new information became available and additional design work was required,” Transport Canada said in a statement.“For example, major machinery and preferred suppliers need to be selected and engaged to complete design work, including analysis related to the propulsion system.”Transport Canada said the timeline for the delivery of the new ferries “continues to be discussed with the shipyard,” and that the “exact delivery timeline and construction cost will only be known once a construction contract is in place.”WATCH | Fire on N.S.-P.E.I. ferry in 2022 a ‘canary in the coal mine,’ says TSB:Fire on N.S.-P.E.I. ferry in 2022 a ‘canary in the coal mine,’ says TSBThe Transportation Safety Board has released its findings after an investigation into a fire on the MV Holiday Island ferry three years ago. The board is using the report as a jumping-off point to launch a national investigation into the nearly 400 fires on commercial vessels in Canada over the last decade CBC’s Wayne Thibodeau reports.The federal government has already spent nearly $40 million to develop a concept and preliminary designs for the two ferries. That’s on top of the almost $40-million price tag for the Norwegian car ferry MV Fanafjord, which Transport Canada purchased to ensure a two-ferry service between the Island and Nova Scotia. Fanafjord was renamed MV Northumberland, and it joined MV Confederation last summer.But neither ferry is new. Confederation is 32 years old, while Northumberland is 18. ‘The new ferry, it needs time to be built, and that time needs to be now,’ says Wood Islands resident Trish Carter. (Wayne Thibodeau/CBC)Trish Carter, who lives near the ferry terminal in Wood Islands, P.E.I., said that’s a point of concern. “Having the [Confederation] getting older and having some problems, it definitely is a concern,” she said. “Looking ahead and having a plan to replace [it] is definitely something that we need to do.”’We can’t wait’Kent MacDonald, the MP for P.E.I.’s Cardigan riding, told CBC News that despite conversations with Canada’s transport minister, he doesn’t have knowledge of the timeline.“I mean, a lobster boat takes almost two years to build now. So 2028 is obviously an unrealistic date,” he said. “I would feel a lot more comfortable once they start welding steel in the factory to say ‘OK, this is the year the ferry will be delivered.’ Otherwise I’m just guessing.”Cardigan MP Kent MacDonald says he is confident the new ferry will be built, but he also doesn’t know when. (Zoom)Transport Canada said the project is structured in three phases. It said phase one for the P.E.I. to Nova Scotia ferry, which consisted of preliminary design work, was completed this July. The next phase is basic design, which the department said will result in “a more detailed and comprehensive package.”MacDonald said his federal transportation colleagues “weren’t firm” on when that second phase would begin.For Carter, it needs to be “now.”“We can’t wait,” she said. “They’re just going to keep on releasing new dates, but without seeing a hard date and seeing things actually in construction, it’s concerning and it’s upsetting and it’s frustrating.”Meanwhile, a Transport Canada spokesperson said concept design work for the MV Madeleine replacement “was put on hold in summer 2023 to allow for further technical analysis and work has not yet resumed. Information on the next steps for the project is expected later this year.”ABOUT THE AUTHORMarilee Devries is a journalist with CBC P.E.I. She has a journalism degree from Toronto Metropolitan University. She can be reached at marilee.devries@cbc.caWith files from Wayne Thibodeau
Delivery date for new N.S.-P.E.I. ferry pushed back once again, Transport Canada says
