BC Ferries’ Spirit of British Columbia will be temporarily removed from service from September 7 – 15 to undergo engineering and maintenance work. At this time, it will also undergo sea trials in preparation for its mid-life upgrade and conversion to dual-fuel so it can operate on natural gas. The Coastal Renaissance will temporarily replace the Spirit of British Columbia on the Tsawwassen – Swartz Bay route.
Passenger/Ro-Ro cargo ship Spirit of British Columbia - Image courtesy: Robert Bortolin
On September 10 and 11, the Spirit of British Columbia will be out in Saanich Inlet to perform sea trials in order to complete various vessel performance tests and to verify the operational profile of the vessel.
The Spirit of British Columbia will undergo a mid-life upgrade and natural gas conversion process at Remontowa Ship Repair SA in Poland from the fall of 2017 through the spring of 2018. The Spirit of Vancouver Island will undergo the same process the following year from the fall of 2018 through the spring of 2019.
Under contract to the Province of British Columbia, BC Ferries is the service provider responsible for the delivery of safe, efficient and dependable ferry service along coastal British Columbia.
Source: BC Ferries