Vanadium(V) arylimido alkylidene N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) alkyl complexes of the type, V(N-2,6-R2C6H3)-(CHSiMe3)(CH2SiMe3)(NHC), [R = Me (1a- c), Cl (2a,b); NHC = 1,3-bis(2,6-dimethylphenyl)imidazol-2-ylidene (IXy, a), 1,3-bis(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)imidazol-2-ylidene (IDipp, b), 1,3bis(cyclohexyl)imidazol-2-ylidene (ICy, c)], and the perhalophenoxy substituted alkylidenes, V(N- 2,6-Cl2C6H3)( CHSiMe3)(OC6X5)(IXy) [X = F (3), Cl (4)], have been prepared. The catalytic activities in the ring opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) of norbornene (NBE) by 1a-c and 2a,b increased by addition of C6X5OH (1.0 equiv). The perhalophenoxides 3 and 4 exhibited superior activities with turnover frequencies (TOFs) up to 208 s(-1). The resultant polymers possessed high molecular weights (Mn up to 9.56 x 10(5)) with cis-syndiotactic stereoregularity up to 98%.