Ponte Ferries back in action with Malta-Sicily crossings to resume from Friday

Ponte Ferries is resuming its fast ferry, catamaran service between Malta and Sicily with bookings opening on Thursday (today).

The company, which promises to offer passengers an alternative efficient ferry service to Sicily, will operate between Wine Wharf quay in Valletta and the port of Augusta, which is located less than five minutes away from the autostrada with quick easy access to Catania, Taormina and Syracuse.

A company spokesperson said: “We look forward to start our operations with immediate effect and thank all the parties involved for their continuous support and cooperation.”

The company is accepting bookings for the months of May and June, while those for July to September will be available at the end of May.

During May and June Ponte Ferries will be operating four times a week — Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays — though the itinerary will be flexible to cater for those wishing to bridge public holidays, the company said in a statement.

“We will be offering competitive prices and remain focused to offer an alternative choice for hauliers and visitors to Sicily,” the spokesperson said.

From 1st July, the catamaran will be shuttling between the two islands daily to cater for the anticipated demand of the summer months.

This is the second time that Ponte Ferries is starting the service, and has been dogged by delays. In August of last year, it was forced to cancel the start of planned operations due to a last-minute legal challenge by a competing operator on the use of berthing quays at Augusta. Virtu Ferries, which also runs a Malta-Sicily service, promptly denied issuing the legal challenge.

When the service had to be postponed last minute, customers that had booked expressed anger at the last-minute change of plans.

Ponte launched services in November temporarily, and suspended the service after citing mandatory drydocking of its catamaran for inspections. The company had said the service would resume in mid-March, but delayed this until May 2022.

Ponte Ferries is a joint venture between Magro Brothers Investments Ltd and Merill In-vest Ltd, owned by entrepreneur brothers Michael and Julian Zammit Tabona, and businessmen Mario and Fabio Muscat, who are also the owner and CEO of OZO Group, respectively.

For more information, ticket sales and schedule visit www.ponteferries.com, call on 2799 8989, or send an e-mail to reservations@ponteferries.com.