The Canadian government closing a deal to acquire an almost new Spanish-built ropax that it intends to operate on the country’s east coast.

Transport Canada has confirmed its has issued an advance contract award notice signaling its intention to buy the 15,600-gt, 1,500-passenger Villa de Teror (built 2019) from Spanish ferry operator Trasmediterranea.

No pricing details have been disclosed.

Expected to enter service in 2021, the vessel will assigned to Traversier CTMA, a state-backed ferry operator that operates ferry services linking the remote Madeleine Islands in the Gulf of St Lawrence with the province of Prince Edward Island.

The Villa de Teror will replace the 6,800-gt ropax Madeleine (built 1980), which has been deemed to have reached the end of its service life.

Trasmediterranea has owned the Villa de Teror since 2017, although the ship’s history stretches back another decade.

It was initially ordered at Astilleros de Sevilla in 2007 by Viking Line, although the newbuilding contract sold to a leasing arm of the Santander Bank in sale and charter back deal signed with the Sweidish ferry giant.

Long delays and the bankruptcy of Astilleros de Sevilla saw Viking Line cancel the charter, leaving Santander with a half-built ship. In 2013 it was sold to Factorías Vulcano, another Spanish shipbuilder, who began work on completing it after a deal to sell it to Trasmediterranea was concluded in 2017.

To be renamed Madeleine II, the Villa de Teror is considered a stopgap measure and its tenure with CTMA will last approximately five years.

Last year the Canadian government placed an order for a permanent replacement for the current Madeleine at Lauzon, Quebec-based Chantier Davie.

Critics have claimed that the Canadian government’s last-minute approach to ordering new ships has led to the costly need to acquire second-hand ferries in Europe to bridge the gap between the withdrawal of an existing vessel and the delivery of its Canadian-built replacement.