'Beautiful' new BC Ferries vessel has officially entered B.C. waters
One of the highly anticipated new Island Class vessels expected to join BC Ferries’ fleet over the next year has arrived in British Columbia.
The new vessel, Island Gwa’yam (pronounced Gwuh-yum), arrived on Wednesday, Sept. 9 in Victoria Inner Harbour after being built at Damen Shipyards in Romania.
Like the Island xwsaĺux̌ul that arrived in late spring, the vessel will undergo final testing, sea trials, and crew training before it begins carrying passengers.
Greater Victoria Harbour Authority
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“It was exciting to see BC Ferries’ new Island 9 vessel at Ogden Point this morning,” stated the Greater Victoria Harbour Authority on social media. “Gwa’yam means ‘whale’ in the Kwak’wala language, and the word was gifted by We Wai Kai First Nation.
“This 80-metre vessel cleared customs at the terminal with the Emerald Princess moored on the other side of the pier. She looks beautiful. Congratulations to our friends at BC Ferries.”
The new ferry is part of BC Ferries’ growing Island Class fleet, which has been designed specifically for shorter inter-island routes.
Greater Victoria Harbour Authority
In November 2025, the ferry company announced First Nations language names for all four vessels. In addition to Island xwsaĺux̌ul and Island Gwa’yam, the other vessels are the Island K’asa and Island sarlequun.
The Island Gwa’yam and Island K’asa will operate on Route 23 between Campbell River and Quadra Island, while the Island xwsaĺux̌ul and Island sarlequun will operate on Route 19 between Nanaimo and Gabriola Island.
When these four new ships enter service in 2027, they will grow the ferry corporation’s fleet of hybrid-electric vessels of this class serving minor routes from six to 10 vessels.
BC Ferries announced in January 2024 that it had chosen Damen Shipyards to build the four vessels.
Then, in May 2024, the federal government’s Canada Infrastructure Bank provided a low-cost loan of $75 million to help finance the order. The final vessel in the order was launched into the water at the Romanian shipyard in March 2026.
The launch of BC Ferries’ ninth Island Class ship on Nov. 19, 2025, at Damen Shipyards’ facility in Romania. (BC Ferries)
Island Class vessels are relatively small ships with a length of 265 ft. (81 metres), and a capacity for about 400 passengers and crew and 47 vehicles.
These are BC Ferries’ first hybrid-electric vessels, capable of using a mix of fossil fuels and battery power, with the ability to fully convert these vessels to 100 per cent battery-electric.
BC Ferries has plans to make investments in the complete electrification of these vessels, which also necessitates the installation of charging infrastructure at the ferry terminals.
With files from Kenneth Chan