Idle time for catamarans

Two huge catamarans, the Thundercat 1 and Thundercat 2 present an astonishing comparison with the curtain of bastions at Senglea creek, and with the many cruise liners which sail past them for a Grand Harbour berth.

They are berthed by the quay near Fort St Angelo.

The catamarans, which belong to the firm Incat, are leased to cruise companies but so far this year they have been lying at berth.

Last year, one of them was leased to Ventouris, which organised cruises round the Greek islands.

A third catamaran owned by Incat and called Avant, which also lay berthed in Grand Harbour, was sold to a buyer in the Far East earlier this year.

The Incat catamaran building facility is in Prince of Wales Bay, Hobart, Tasmania.

According to the Incat website, the privately owned company are innovators and builders of Wave Piercing and K Class catamarans. So far the company has built 27 such fast vehicle and passenger ferries.

The company is represented in Malta by Sullivan Maritime.