New Malta-Sicily catamaran taking shape in Australia

Virtù Ferries said the building of a 69-metre, all weather, high speed catamaran by Austal Ships in Fremantle, Western Australia, is at an advanced stage.

The vessel, with a capacity of 600 passengers and 65 cars including 10 TIR/trucks/double-decker coaches, will on completion undergo sea trials in Australia for delivery in Malta in September. The vessel, the Maria Dolores, will be deployed on a year-round scheduled service on the company's Malta-Sicily route and on a new cargo service to Reggio.

The combination of a garage height of 4.6 metres and a crossing time of 90 minutes from Pozzallo, three hours from Catania and four-and-a-half hours from Reggio have attracted the attention of European touring clubs, the company said. Southern Italy and Sicily being popular among travellers using campers, local camp sites with facilities for motorised campers will benefit from this new service, it added.

Coach tour operators have expressed interest in including Malta in their itinerary.

Virtù Ferries is in the process of reaching a reciprocal agreement with Trenitalia for the marketing of combined train/ferries tickets. Reservations and tickets for Virtù Ferries return crossings Sicily-Malta will be available from all Trenitalia outlets throughout Italy facilitating car travel and promoting Malta as a holiday destination, the company said.

The Maria Dolores is registered under the Malta flag and conforms to IMO (International Maritime Organisation) and the more stringent EU regulations.

Virtù Ferries operate a regular shipping service as defined by EU legislation reducing Customs formalities for passengers' personal baggage and cargo originating in EU member states.