"Technical issues" identified on Australia's delayed Bass Strait ferries
Australia's ABC News reports that the two new ferries slated for operation in Bass Strait in Tasmania have been beset by "technical issues" related to their LNG propulsion systems.
The issues are the latest problems to befall the sister ships Spirit of Tasmania IV and Spirit of Tasmania V, the two large Ro-Pax ferries that were ordered by the Tasmanian Government from Rauma Marine Constructions (RMC) of Finland.
The said technical issues have been identified on both ferries, Tasmania Transport Minister Eric Abetz confirmed earlier this week.
Because of these issues as well as inclement weather, Spirit of Tasmania IV's departure for Australia, which was originally set for Monday, May 26, has been postponed.
Mr Abetz said that the issues must first be assessed and rectified before the ferry would be allowed to sail for Hobart, where it will undergo final outfitting.
Spirit of Tasmania IV was handed over to Tasmanian Government-owned TT-Line Company in September last year. However, the ferry has spent the last few months in Scotland, its entry into service being delayed pending the completion of dedicated wharf facilities at Devonport on Tasmania's northwestern coast.
The ship is now tentatively scheduled to finally enter service in 2027 when the upgraded wharf is expected to be operational.
Anita Dow, Deputy Labor Party Leader in Tasmania's Lower House, had earlier said that the two ferries, "are five years late, AU$500 million (US$300 million) over budget and unable to operate at full capacity when the first ship is operational – and we are still not sure when this will be."
Construction of Spirit of Tasmania IV and V had originally been relegated to a German shipyard. In 2020, the yard filed for insolvency, resulting in the cancellation of the shipbuilding contract.
RMC was awarded the contract in April 2021, and the ferries' deliveries were set at 2023 and 2024, respectively. However, RMC began experiencing financial trouble in 2022 when it suffered supply chain disruptions, which the company blamed on the Covid-19 pandemic and the conflict in Ukraine.
RMC has since restructured, though it still faced financial difficulties well into 2023.
Note: Dr Neil Baird, Co-Founder of Baird Maritime, had earlier warned against delegating the construction of Tasmania's newest ferries to Finland. Read his views on the matter here and here.
"Amusingly, though, Finnish ferry owners purchased similar new ferries, at considerably lower prices and with much shorter building times, from Chinese yards at the same time that Tasmania was buying ships from Finland," Dr Baird wrote in 2024.
"Amazing!!! No private owners would survive for very long if they indulged in the kinds of acquisition processes indulged in by the TT-Line Company."
