Certainty call over ferries
BUSINESS leaders in TTLine’s Tasmanian gateway have issued a “please explain” to the government after its shock announcement that it had gone back to the drawing board in its hunt for someone to build two new Bass Strait ferries.
It is now five years since Tasmania was promised it would get two new Spirit of Tasmania ships to carry passengers and freight across Bass Strait by 2022.
But the project has regressed with the government making a shock announcement on Tuesday it had put its talks with Finnish shipbuilder Rauma Marine on hold to look for an Australian contract.
The Rauma memorandum of understanding was undertaken after its original contract with a German shipbuilder fell through.
While the government claims its about-face is all about local jobs, frustration is mounting – especially in Devonport, home to the Spirit of Tasmania ships.
Devonport City Mayor Annette Rockliff said the lack of certainty over when the promised new ships would be delivered could undermine confidence in the region.
“The Spirits are an essential part of the economy in this part of the state and the anticipation was growing in regard to the new larger vessels previously due in 2022,” Mayor Rockliff said.
“Going back to the drawing board now will obviously delay delivery of the new ships and it is imperative that we understand the new time frames and that an order is placed as soon as possible. It is also important that assurances are provided that the size, capacity and specification won’t be compromised due to this change in direction.”
When the plan to have two new ships built was first announced the government was vehement no Australian shipbuilders had the capability to fulfil the contract.
Then on Tuesday Premier Peter Gutwein announced its talks with the Finnish outfit had been put aside in favour of starting from scratch to find an Australian shipbuilder.
On Wednesday, State Growth Minister Michael Ferguson claimed the shock move was all about jobs and keeping the money in this country.
Mr Ferguson said the current ships were fit for task until 2028 and the memorandum of understanding with the Finnish company could be revisited.
He said the $80m put aside was locked in and could not be spent on a different purpose.
The GeelongPort says it is ready to welcome TT-Line’s Spirit of Tasmania vessels to their new Victorian home base whether they are the existing ships or future new builds.
GeelongPort is in the planning phase of building a new terminal for the Bass Strait ferries after the state government decided to disband Port Melbourne due to the high cost of docking.
And it said a delay in the planned delivery of new ships would not affect those plans.
“The project is continuing as scheduled and we are excited to be welcoming the existing vessels to Geelong from 2022,” a spokesman said.