# mv Sonia / New B.C ferry to cost $100 million



## erussellrv (May 24, 2005)

The ferry corporation of British Columbia has announced purchase of the MV Sonia from Spain as a replacement for the MV Queen of the North which sunk last year when it was allowed to plow into an island without preventative measures being applied.

Question:
Does anyone have a picture of the MV Sonia which will soon become a new BC Ferry as tens of millions more are spent to upgrade the ship and adapt it for the ferry terminals?


Eric


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## Bruce Carson (Jun 14, 2005)

Hi Eric:
I think this is the ferry, although she is lettered 'Sonia-X' in the pictures.

http://www.balearia.org/prensa2.php3?id=442

Bruce C


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## Gulpers (Sep 8, 2005)

*Another Sonia*

Eric,

Is the ship definitely coming from Spain or possibly Port of Spain, Trinidad?

http://www.trinidadexpress.com/index.pl/article_news?id=48857441

http://www.trinidadexpress.com/index.pl/article_news?id=55389270


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## Frank P (Mar 13, 2005)

The ships on the Spanish and Trinadad sites are the same one or they are sister ships, if you you look at the bridge and the portholes below the bridge they are identical.

Cheers Frank


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## danube4 (Aug 20, 2005)

I think you're right Frank. Try:

www.isp-usa.com/fleetinfo/index.html

Barney.


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## Gulpers (Sep 8, 2005)

Frank/Barney,
Well done - I'm sure you have cracked it! (Applause)


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## rushie (Jul 5, 2005)

*New B.C ferry to cost $100mill*

From the Times Colonist - 

_It'll cost $100 million to buy a ready-built ferry to run between Port Hardy and Prince Rupert, and the province is ready to help B.C. Ferries with the cost.

In two separate announcements yesterday, B.C. Ferries and the Transportation Ministry outlined purchase and financing plans to replace the Queen of the North, which sank in March on its northern route.

The ferry corporation confirmed it will pay $50.6 million for the Sonia, a two-year-old, 117-metre ship currently in Spain. The additional costs are associated with refurbishments, duties and taxes, and other things like delivery and trials.

Meanwhile, the province said it is amending its contract with the ferry corporation to allow the purchase of the Sonia, thereby restoring full service to the northern routes by next spring. The new contract cuts two years off B.C. Ferries' replacement schedule for the northern routes.

Under the previous contract, the northern routes would not have seen a new vessel until 2009.

The province will also increase its service payments to B.C. Ferries for northern routes to $34 million, up from $19.8 million. Also included in the plans are terminal upgrades.

The ferry corporation will take possession of the ship on Oct. 3, and B.C. Ferries president David Hahn said crews are already in Spain undergoing training.

The ship will be reflagged and renamed, and discussions have already begun on what to call it, Hahn said, adding that some public participation will likely be sought in the process.

The ship is to be in service by April after undergoing $18 million in modifications to meet Canadian safety standards and improve customer amenities.

B.C. Ferries will be seeking bids on the retrofit, but Hahn said the ship will be repainted in Greece, "where the weather is more conducive" right now.

Hahn said duty and taxes on the purchase of the Sonia are estimated at $20 million. Delivery, sea trials, Transport Canada inspections and other costs are pegged at $5 million.

B.C. Ferries chose to buy the Sonia because of its size, relatively new age and its capabilities for sailing in tough waters similar to those encountered in the north, Hahn said.

It will replace the 40-year-old Queen of the North, which struck a rock off Gil Island on March 22, en route from Prince Rupert to Port Hardy, and sank. Two passengers are missing and believed dead. Since then, the smaller Queen of Prince Rupert has been servicing the route.

The Sonia carries at least 600 passengers, compared with 650 on the Queen of the North. The respective car capacities are 101 and 115. The new ferry will have 70 cabins, up from 55 on the North.

Meanwhile, Queen of Prince Rupert is scheduled to be replaced in the spring of 2009. The ferry corporation announced in August it had signed a $133-million contract with German company Flensburger Schifflau-Gesellschalft (FSG) to build the ferry -- the fourth it will have built for B.C. Ferries.

The 28-year-old Queen of Chilliwack, which also sails between Port Hardy and Bella Coola during summer months, is scheduled for retirement but replacement plans have not been announced.

Port Hardy Mayor Hank Bood called the Sonia "a good boat," adding that "it's bigger and faster and has more amenities."

With plans in the works to replace the other two aging vessels, B.C. Ferries "appears to be following through on a business plan" that recognizes the importance of the ferries to the northern economies, Bood said._

Rushie


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## Jan Hendrik (Feb 14, 2005)

With more than 35 ferries, they consider themselves the largest ferry operator in the world.


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## erussellrv (May 24, 2005)

Yes, thanks. You've got it. The ship is coming from Spain. Apparently, the existing company is giving up the ferry business. Much less water inside than the current one ;-)

Eric


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## Hamish Mackintosh (Jan 5, 2006)

rushie said:


> From the Times Colonist -
> 
> _It'll cost $100 million to buy a ready-built ferry to run between Port Hardy and Prince Rupert, and the province is ready to help B.C. Ferries with the cost.
> 
> ...


The two ships being built in Germany ,the company claims ,will be the biggest double ended ferries in the world


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## Keltic Star (Jan 21, 2006)

Ugly looking tub!!


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