'9 Failed Bidding Attempts' Large Passenger Ship for Baengnyeongdo... Incheon City Considers Direct Construction

The introduction of a large passenger ship to Baengnyeongdo, which had faced difficulties due to the ferry company's withdrawal from the project, has entered a new phase with financial input from Incheon City.

On the 10th, Incheon City announced that it is considering directly constructing a large passenger ship to be deployed on the Incheon~Baengnyeong route, aiming for service commencement in 2030, to alleviate maritime transportation inconveniences and secure mobility rights for residents of Baengnyeongdo, Daecheongdo, and Socheongdo, the northernmost islands in the West Sea.

Harmony Flower, which operated the Incheon-Baengnyeongdo route [Photo provided by Incheon City]

The Incheon~Baengnyeongdo route had been operated by the car ferry Harmony Flower (2071t), but service was suspended in November 2022 due to the vessel's age limit (25 years). Currently, the 1600t Korea Pride and 500t Korea Princess operate on this route, but neither can carry vehicles, leading residents to continuously demand the introduction of a large car ferry capable of transporting seafood and cargo trucks.

Ongjin County, anticipating the expiration of the Harmony Flower's service life in May last year, pursued the introduction of a large passenger ship by soliciting private ferry companies nine times since 2020, selecting Hansol Shipping as the preferred negotiator in July last year and signing an implementation agreement.

However, Hansol Shipping notified Ongjin County last month of its intention to withdraw from the project, resulting in the cancellation of the agreement and the failure to introduce the large passenger ship. The ferry company reportedly abandoned the project due to the burden of securing shipbuilding funds amid high interest rates.

Accordingly, Incheon City and Ongjin County judged that further calls for ferry operators would be difficult and decided to proceed with the project by directly constructing the large passenger ship using public funds. Ongjin County plans to conduct a research project within the year to prepare for its own feasibility study and initiate preliminary administrative procedures such as the Ministry of the Interior and Safety's feasibility study and central investment review.

An Incheon City official stated, "We will closely monitor the preliminary administrative procedures for introducing the Baengnyeongdo large passenger ship and actively propose amendments to the 'West Sea 5 Islands Support Special Act' to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety to secure national funding for shipbuilding."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.