N.S.-P.E.I. ferry service extended by 3 days to Dec. 23, says Cardigan MP

The ferry service between Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia will run for a few extra days beyond the usual end to the season. 

Lawrence MacAulay, the MP for P.E.I.'s Cardigan riding, said in a social media post that the MV Confederation will make crossings until Monday, Dec. 23. The service was initially scheduled to end Dec. 20. 

The vessel will make four round trips Dec. 21 and 22, according to the ship's clerk. On Dec. 23, there will be 7 a.m. and 10 a.m. departures from Wood Islands, P.E.I., and an 8:30 a.m. crossing from Caribou, N.S. 

On Dec. 4, Confederation made its first crossing in over 10 weeks after the ship collided with the wharf in Wood Islands and damaged its bow visor, a type of raisable door, sending it to the shipyard in Pictou, N.S., for repairs. 

But the ferry made only one round trip across the Northumberland Strait that day before a technical issue with the "load sharing" of its engines forced Northumberland Ferries Limited to cancel the remaining crossings.

Fanafjord, now MV Northumberland, on its way

The Confederation's engine problem was quickly resolved, but it was just the latest issue in what's been a tumultuous season for the ferry service. 

The second ship on the route this summer, MV Saaremaa, went down for engine repairs on Sept. 22 and never returned to service before it had to be returned to the Quebec provincial ferry service that owns it.

Northumberland Ferries leased that ship for the peak tourism season for the past three years, since MV Holiday Island caught fire during a crossing in July 2022. The fire heavily damaged the vessel and it had to be scrapped.

Politicians representing the area have been pushing Transport Canada to take steps to guarantee two-ship service during the busiest months of the year until a long-planned new ferry is built by Chantier Davie Canada Inc., a Quebec shipyard. The latest estimate for delivery is fall 2029 at the earliest.

The federal department responded by buying MV Fanafjord, a Norwegian vehicle ferry that is undergoing a refit and sea trials in that Scandinavian country before coming to Canada in time for the 2025 ferry season, which begins in May.

Transport Canada confirmed to CBC News recently that the federal government has now taken possession of the Fanafjord, and has renamed it MV Northumberland.