The high speed catamaran ferries building program, the Pacificat Series 1000, was initiated by the B.C. government in 1994, partly to revive the shipbuilding industry in B.C., which had virtually shut down with the closure of Versatile Pacific Shipyards in the early 1990s. At 122.5 m long with a beam of 25.8 m they were the second largest aluminum multihull in the world. Their service speed is 37 knots. Construction was managed by CFI (Catamaran Ferries International Inc.), a wholly owned subsidiary of B.C. Ferries, with six B.C. shipyards participating in the construction. Their capacity is 1000 passengers and 250 cars (no trucks). Design was by the Australian company Incat Designs Pty Ltd., with Canadian naval architects Robert Allan Ltd. responsible for the machinery, auxiliary systems, electrical and outfitting aspects. A 6000 square foot, 13.4 million dollar assembly facility for the ships was built on Pier 94 in North Vancouver, just east of the former Versatile Pacific Shipyards. Construction delays and cost overruns became a major political issue for Glen Clark's NDP government. While originally budgeted at 70 million dollars each, the cost of the first ship ballooned to 118 million dollars, and the second and third to 104 million dollars each. Welding aluminum proved to be a particularly difficult problem. Attempts to sell the technology offshore met with no success. Numerous operational problems also plagued the ferries. They saw only limited service, and have been put up for sale at a fraction of their original cost. Construction ceased with the completion of the third ferry in the fall of 2000.