New delay threatens to prolong €10,600-a-day Nikolaos charter

A new delay in Gozo Channel’s latest attempt to charter a fourth ferry for its fleet threatens to prolong its dependence on the ageing MV Nikolaos, currently costing taxpayers an estimated €10,600 a day, excluding fuel.

The deadline for offers under a €7.7 million tender was initially set for 25 August but has now been postponed until 2 September.

The extension adds to concerns about the timing of the procurement, as the existing time-charter agreement for the Nikolaos expired on 30 June, according to the tender document itself.

Gozo Channel has not publicly explained under which arrangement the fourth vessel continues to operate following the expiry of that contract, how long the arrangement will remain in place, or whether the daily rate has changed.

The latest call is not the first attempt to replace the ageing and inconvenient ferry.

Two consecutive tenders issued between 2022 and 2023 failed without attracting a single offer. Not even the Nikolaos’s Greek owners submitted a bid, leaving Gozo Channel dependent on a direct arrangement for the vessel.

The latest tender, CT2143/2026, has an estimated value of €7.738 million, excluding VAT, for an initial two-year period. This works out at exactly €10,600 a day.

Gozo Channel may extend the agreement for two additional six-month periods. If both options are exercised at the estimated daily rate, the contract would cost €11.6 million over three years, excluding VAT and fuel.

Even if the latest tender attracts bidders, the replacement vessel may not enter service soon.

The successful contractor will be allowed up to 24 weeks from the signing of the charter agreement to deliver the vessel. Evaluation, adjudication, the statutory appeals period and contract signing must take place before that delivery period begins.

This means Gozo Channel may remain dependent on the Nikolaos – or another interim arrangement – for several more months.

The tender seeks a double-ended RoPax ferry capable of carrying at least 500 seated passengers and 130 cars. It must have forward and aft vehicle ramps, separate passenger ramps, azimuth thrusters and a minimum service speed of 12.5 knots.

It must also be compatible with the existing infrastructure at Mġarr and Ċirkewwa, complete between five and eight return trips daily and be painted in Gozo Channel’s colours at the contractor’s expense.

The specialised requirements significantly restrict the pool of vessels capable of meeting the tender conditions.

The Nikolaos, built in 1987, was already described as operating below its nominal capacity in 2023. During winter, it could carry a maximum of 350 passengers rather than its stated capacity of 650.

Unless its certification or operating restrictions have since changed, it may not satisfy the new tender’s minimum requirement of 500 seated passengers.

Gozo Channel describes the fourth vessel as necessary to maintain service levels amid increased passenger and vehicle demand. Yet years after its first unsuccessful attempts, the state company remains without a long-term replacement and reliant on a costly charter arrangement for an almost 40-year-old vessel.