The newly-announced start-up date for Pearl Seas Cruises’ 210-passenger Pearl Mist is May 9, 2009 – a result of additional shipyard delays, Cruise Industry News has learned.

Pearl Seas previously announced that the ship would begin cruising in the first quarter of 2009.

Shipyard officials at Irving Shipbuilding in Halifax, where the Mist is being built, would not comment on the status of the vessel.

The ship is slated to sail in the Canadian Maritimes, on the St. Lawrence Seaway, and the Great Lakes, before repositioning to the Caribbean in the winter.

Pearl Seas’ second 210-passenger ship, which was expected to be delivered in 2010, has been pushed back to 2011, a source said, adding that the vessel will not be built at Irving Shipbuilding. A new shipyard will be selected soon, the source said.

Pearl Seas – an offshore affiliate of American Cruise Lines, Inc. – originally announced plans in late 2006 to build two passenger ships at Irving Shipbuilding. The first was scheduled to begin cruise service in July 2008, and the second, June 2009.