Gozo Channel to get two new ferries and dedicated cargo vessel

The Gozo Channel fleet, including the purchase of two new ferries and the retrofitting of the existing ones.

The Government announced its long-term plan for the fleet today, with the new ferries set to start operating by 2029. 

The plan is for the Ta’ Pinu, Malita and Gaudos ferries to all be retrofitted with new engines. The Ta’ Pinu and Malita will continue to be used as passenger ferries, while the Gaudos ferry will be repurposed to transport cargo between the Freeport and Ras il-Ħanżir and Mġarr, Gozo, similar to the old service that used to operate from Sa Maison in Pietà. 

Two new passenger ferries will also join the fleet: a larger vessel capable of carrying up to 250 vehicles and a smaller one with a capacity of 75 vehicles. A tender will be issued for the provision of these two new ferries.

To put the size of the new ferries into perspective, the Nikolaos has a capacity of 168 vehicles, while the Ta’ Pinu and Malita have a capacity of 138 and the Gaudos 72.

Once the two new vessels are acquired, the retrofitting will take place in a staged manner to ensure that there are always four passenger vehicles and one cargo vessel in operation at any given moment. Another vessel will be leased instead of the Nikolaos to serve as the cargo ferry until the process is complete.

This represents a change of strategy from the government, which had initially attempted to lease a new ferry for the Gozo Channel. Two tenders were issued, in 2022 and 2025, but they didn’t attract any bids.

Cover photo: Gozo Channel Operations Ltd