The V2V Empress catamaran, which for the last three years has been idle and moored just below the CPR Steamship Terminal building, is shipping out.
The 126-foot vessel, which had initially been listed for sale at $6 million US before the price was reduced through the pandemic — it hit $4.8 million US at one point — has been sold and was loaded onto a cargo ship Wednesday at Ogden Point, bound for the Caribbean.
The Empress was completely rebuilt and kitted out in 2016 by Australian-based owners Riverside Marine for daily ferry service between Victoria and Vancouver.
The company, which launched in May 2017, pulled the plug on the venture two and a half years later, citing heavy financial losses.
aduffy@timescolonist.com
