By
Rebecca Gibson |
Canadian operator BC Ferries has officially named its first Salish-class ferry at Remontowa Shipbuilding’s Gdansk yard in Poland.
Scheduled to replace the 50-year old Queen of Burnaby on the Comox – Powell River route in Canada in late 2016, the ferry was named Salish Orca by her sponsor Margaret McDonagh, BC Ferries’ senior chief steward on the Queen of Burnaby. The name Salish Orca was chosen to honour the Coast Salish people and the Salish Sea where the ship will operate.
Salish Orca has been built as a dual-fuel ferry, which can run on both LNG and ultralow sulphur diesel fuel. She will be joined by two sister ships – Salish Eagle and Salish Orca – in 2017. Using LNG fuel is expected to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by around 9,000 metric tonnes per year, which is equivalent to taking 1,900 passenger vehicles off the road annually.
“This marks a major milestone in building our new ships, as we honour maritime tradition with the official naming ceremony for the Salish Orca,” said Mike Corrigan, BC Ferries’ president and CEO. “As we progress with our vessel replacement programme, we will continue to look for opportunities to build LNG-powered ferries, while maintaining our high standard of safety and reliability as well as reducing our environmental footprint.”