The company that owns the high-speed passenger ferry that regularly commutes between Pingtan county in Fujian province and Taichung city in Taiwan, said that the ferry is also set to offer trips to Taipei.

Starting from October, the Haixia will make the round trip Pingtan-Taichung-Pingtan on Mondays, Tuesday, Thursdays and Fridays, and another trip to Taipei on Wednesdays and Saturdays, the Fujian Straits Express Roll-on and Roll-off Ship Transportation Company said on Sept 18.

Haixia's official maiden voyage to Taipei is expected to take place on Oct 9, the company said. The ferry made a 2.5-hour trial voyage to Taipei on May 22., and the Taiwan authorities approved the route in August.

The Haixia will be mainly responsible for transporting passengers in the first stage of the Pingtan-Taipei route, and it will later engage in cargo transportation as it does on the Pingtan-Taichung route, according to a report in the Straits Metropolis Daily.

The Haixia is the world's fastest passenger ship of its kind, with a maximum speed of 96 nautical mph and a capacity of 782 passengers.

Statistics show that, since its launch in November 2011, the Haixia has transported more than 150,000 passengers across the Taiwan Straits, thus making a big contribution to Pingtan tourism.

The Haixia started to engage in cargo transportation and postal delivery earlier this year and, in the first half, it transported approximately 1,800 tons of freight worth $77 million and 30 tons of international mail and packages, according to the local port administration authorities.

Edited by Chen Zhilin and Niva Whyman