Fincantieri has been awarded a contract to build a latest generation ferry by Canada's Société des traversiers du Québec (STQ).

The 130 metre ferry will have a capacity of 800 passengers and 180 cars and will have a dual fuel diesel electric propulsion system able to operate on marine diesel oil or LNG. It will be the first vessel in the STQ fleet not to be built in a Quebec shipyard.

The contract, awarded following a public tender in which major competitors took part, is worth C$148 million (USD147 million). In January 2010, the Quebec Ministry of Transport awarded a contract for naval architecture and engineering services to Deltamarin/Navtec, a Finnish-Canadian consortium, which drew up preliminary plans.

The new ferry will be equipped with azimuth thrusters, each having two counter-rotating propellers, which together with transverse propellers, will give the ferry exceptional manoeuvrability.  These characteristics, combined with a complex and extensive system of ramps and doors at both bow and aft, will allow the vessel to load and unload very quickly.

Georges Farrah, STQ Chairman and CEO, said: "I am very happy with the outcome of the very demanding design and construction process for this new ship due to start service in Matane in three years time. The new ferry will be much larger and better equipped than the Camille-Marcoux that it will replace. Its larger hold capacity will be suitable for all types of vehicles. The crossing will be a more pleasant experience for passengers."

Source: InterFerry News

Image source: ColtonCompany.com