A new ferry is to be used to transport passengers between Taiwan proper and Penghu County starting in late August, the Maritime and Port Bureau said yesterday.
A ceremony was held at Naikai Zosen Corp in Japan’s Hiroshima Prefecture yesterday morning whereby the Penghu Ferry (澎湖輪) was transferred to the water.
Bureau Director-General Yeh Hsieh-lung (葉協隆), Penghu County Deputy Commissioner Lin Chieh-hsing (林皆興), and other dignitaries in the public and private sectors participated at the event.
Photo courtesy of the Maritime and Port Bureau
The purpose of building the Penghu Ferry is to replace the Taihua Ferry, which has been used to transport passengers as well as deliver daily necessities and motor vehicles to Penghu over the past 34 years, Yeh said.
The new ferry has leisure and entertainment facilities in the passenger cabin, including a parent-children room, a games room, a coffee shop, a social hall and a dining area, he said.
“The Penghu Ferry is expected to become a new tourist attraction, facilitating cargo and passenger services between Taiwan proper and Penghu, and boosting the tourism in the outlying island,” he said. “We hope that Naikai Zosen Corp can maintain its high standard of shipbuilding quality while building the Penghu Ferry and deliver the ship on schedule.”
The new ferry would operate under a new business model once it is launched, Yeh said.
“In the past, local government officials placed the contract to build a ferry on a public tender. Once the ferry was built, they outsourced the operation of the ferry to another contractor. The problem with the old business model was that it could lead to confusion in ownership and responsibilities among ship owners, ship operators and shipbuilders. Local governments must also bear high maintenance costs of ferries,” he said. “Under the new business model, the government would only procure the services offered by ferry operators, who can then have the ferries custom-made to meet demand for the next 20 years.”
The new business model allows a more flexible use of ferries, ensures a high availability rate and alleviates the financial burden on the government, he said.
The Japanese shipbuilder, which has extensive experience building roll-on/roll-off ships, began building the Penghu Ferry on Aug. 23 last year after the project was approved by the Executive Yuan on April 6, 2021.
The ferry is scheduled to begin operations before the end of August after completing tests of all its equipment and mandatory sea trials, the bureau said.
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