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RNZ News
12-06-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Maritime Union says Aratere ferry should not retire, despite breakdown
Some Thursday morning sailings of the Aratere ferry were cancelled. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone The Maritime Union says the government should not retire the Aratere despite its recent breakdown, as a three-ship fleet is needed for a resilient Cook Strait connection. A propulsion fault meant the ferry had to wait at anchor for hours in Queen Charlotte Sound overnight while a specialist electrician came to fix the problem. The breakdown comes while the Kaiārahi is out of action due to scheduled wet dock maintenance, including emergency repairs, and ahead of the Kaitaki being out of service for a routine safety inspection. Maritime Union of New Zealand national secretary Carl Findlay said the incident was concerning and could have been "catastrophic" if it happened in the Cook Strait, potentially leading to "another huge maritime disaster". He said the crew, who were currently facing the loss of their jobs due to the Aratere's impending retirement, deserved thanks for upholding high standards of professionalism and keeping passengers safe and sound while the ferry was delayed for hours in the Marlborough Sounds. "It must be really playing on their minds, but they carry on with their work day in, day out in a professional manner and they deserve some applause for that." Findlay said problems with the vessels, which were all at the end of life, were well documented and the union didn't want to see the Aratere retired in August as it left only two vessels responsible for maintaining the inter-island link. The union had flagged the dangers of removing a key vessel from service, and the current situation showed that KiwiRail needed to rethink their plan. The union wanted to see the government reverse its decision, spend more money on maintenance and retain the 71 members currently facing the loss of their jobs, until the new ships arrived in 2029. "They're ageing as we all know, it just shows again the absolutely silly call that Nicola Willis made 18 months ago when she collapsed the iREX project." "We'd have a new ferry coming around the corner if [the government] hadn't cancelled that project and cost the tax payer hundreds of millions of dollars." He said the first of those new purpose-built ferries was due to arrive in this year, but were now another four years away, and passengers were likely to face years of disruption. The union wanted to see the government reverse its decision, spend more money on maintenance and retain the 71 members currently facing the loss of their jobs, until the new ships arrived in 2029. Findlay said the entire Interislander fleet was currently hampered by breakdowns, damage, or being taken out of service for audit. Last weekend, Kaiārahi had its bow door damaged in rough seas, which will be welded shut to allow it to continue to operate until a scheduled dry dock in Singapore in July. The Kaitaki would soon be out of action while it underwent a Maritime NZ audit, before it headed to dry dock in Singapore. A KiwiRail spokesperson said it has had to cancel the 4pm Aratere sailing, as it continues to explore what caused the electrical issue that led to the ferry breaking down overnight. It comes after the 6.15am sailing from Wellington and the return 11.00am sailing from Picton were cancelled. KiwiRail is undertaking further testing to identify what caused the problem. Private passengers booked on the 4pm sailing are being shifted to the Kaitaki sailing at 8.45am on Friday, while all freight customers have been moved onto a Kaiārahi sailing which is expected to depart later today. On 7 June, Kaiārahi's bow door sustained some damage when the vessel encountered two large waves off Sinclair Head in Cook Strait. Kaiārahi had departed two hours early from Picton, at 5.30am, to get ahead of the forecast large swells. It was a freight only sailing and the swells were well within the vessel's operating limits, with the wave rider showing a 4.4 metre swell. It has been in scheduled maintenance wet dock since then, with repair work done on the bow door. The spokesperson said the work had almost been completed and the vessel would resume sailing, before it left for dry dock in Singapore on 27 June. It is due back on 18 August. Meanwhile, the Kaitaki will be out of action this weekend while it undergoes its annual Passenger Ship Safety Certificate inspection this weekend. A Maritime NZ spokesperson said they were speaking to KiwiRail after the Aratere's breakdown, to determine if further action needed to be taken. It is seeking more information around what occurred, the actions undertaken to remedy the issue, and assurances that appropriate measures are in place to prevent recurrence. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Scoop
12-06-2025
- Business
- Scoop
Concerns About Ongoing Cook Strait Ferry Issues
Press Release – Maritime Union of New Zealand Mr Findlay says the Union had flagged the dangers of removing a key vessel from service, and the current situation showed that KiwiRail needed to rethink their Maritime Union of New Zealand says the Cook Strait ferry service is struggling, with the entire Interislander fleet currently either suffering breakdowns, wave damage or being taken out of service for audit. Maritime Union of New Zealand National Secretary Carl Findlay says the vital transport link is hanging by a thread, with ongoing disruption. He says the Aratere has once again experienced technical issues, following engine shaft problems in Picton on Wednesday evening that caused several hours of delays. Crew members and passengers had to remain on board before being able to disembark in Wellington. Over the previous weekend, Kaiarahi had its bow door damaged in rough seas, which will be welded shut to allow it to continue to operate until a scheduled dry dock in Singapore in July. Kaitaki is being pulled from service this weekend for a Maritime NZ audit. KiwiRail announced in May 2025 it would remove the rail-enabled Aratere ferry from service in August 2025, and is now seeking to cut 70 jobs for MUNZ members in the deck and catering departments on the Aratere. Mr Findlay says the Union had flagged the dangers of removing a key vessel from service, and the current situation showed that KiwiRail needed to rethink their plan. He says technical problems with Cook Strait ferries extended to the private operator Strait Shipping, and had their roots in a failure to invest in modern shipping and infrastructure by the Government and private operators. Mr Findlay says the cancellation of the iRex project by Finance Minister Nicola Willis was going to cause years of disruption as the iRex ferries would have been entering into service over the next year or two. New ferries announced by Minister of Rail Winston Peters are now not expected until at least 2029.
Scoop
12-06-2025
- Business
- Scoop
Concerns About Ongoing Cook Strait Ferry Issues
Press Release – Maritime Union of New Zealand Mr Findlay says the Union had flagged the dangers of removing a key vessel from service, and the current situation showed that KiwiRail needed to rethink their Maritime Union of New Zealand says the Cook Strait ferry service is struggling, with the entire Interislander fleet currently either suffering breakdowns, wave damage or being taken out of service for audit. Maritime Union of New Zealand National Secretary Carl Findlay says the vital transport link is hanging by a thread, with ongoing disruption. He says the Aratere has once again experienced technical issues, following engine shaft problems in Picton on Wednesday evening that caused several hours of delays. Crew members and passengers had to remain on board before being able to disembark in Wellington. Over the previous weekend, Kaiarahi had its bow door damaged in rough seas, which will be welded shut to allow it to continue to operate until a scheduled dry dock in Singapore in July. Kaitaki is being pulled from service this weekend for a Maritime NZ audit. KiwiRail announced in May 2025 it would remove the rail-enabled Aratere ferry from service in August 2025, and is now seeking to cut 70 jobs for MUNZ members in the deck and catering departments on the Aratere. Mr Findlay says the Union had flagged the dangers of removing a key vessel from service, and the current situation showed that KiwiRail needed to rethink their plan. He says technical problems with Cook Strait ferries extended to the private operator Strait Shipping, and had their roots in a failure to invest in modern shipping and infrastructure by the Government and private operators. Mr Findlay says the cancellation of the iRex project by Finance Minister Nicola Willis was going to cause years of disruption as the iRex ferries would have been entering into service over the next year or two. New ferries announced by Minister of Rail Winston Peters are now not expected until at least 2029.
Otago Daily Times
19-05-2025
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
KiwiRail promises no 'price-gouging' when ferry retires
Interislander ferry operator KiwiRail says with the Aratere gone, passengers may need to travel on less popular sailings or be more flexible with dates. But it says there will be no price-gouging or considerable increases to ticket prices. The Aratere Interislander ferry will retire by the end of August, meaning cuts to both passenger and freight capacity. The Aratere is the only ship that carries rail wagons, but cannot use the Picton or Wellington wharfs as they are being upgraded for two new ferries arriving in 2029. A temporary wharf would have cost $120 million. The ship can hold 650 passengers, 230 cars and 28 rail wagons. More than 2200 passenger bookings have already been transferred from Aratere to other vessels - the Kaitaki and Kaiārahi. Despite the Aratere being the only rail-enabled ferry, Kaitaki and Kaiārahi can carry rail freights by using road bridging. Interislander executive general manager Duncan Roy advised passengers to book their trips early, especially for peak season around Christmas time. "We don't have full ferries all the time with three [ferries], so we'd expect to have fuller ferries and, probably, people will be travelling at non-traditional times - earlier in the morning, later in the evening," he told RNZ. Roy would not say whether prices would increase after the Aratere retires, but assured there would be no price-gouging. "Nothing considerable... there could be a price increase anytime, but we watch our prices and monitor them like any good business. We work hard to keep the cost down." He said Interislander had dynamic pricing, meaning prices went up in times of high demand. Asked if customers may have to pay more because of reduced capacity, he replied: "That may be the case". 'Bad news' Union NZ spokesperson Victor Billot told RNZ job losses were "likely", but did not know how many would go. "We will be fighting for jobs. We can't afford to lose any more seafarers in New Zealand." Billot said there needed to be thought given into how the retirement of the Aratere would impact the security of supply chains between the North and South Islands. "This is going to reduce the resilience. It's going to lead to a higher risk of service failure if there is a problem with one of the other existing ferries. It's bad news, as far as we're concerned." Ferry operator Kiwirail had been under fire after multiple breakdowns in recent years left passengers stranded. In 2023, Interislander's largest ferry - the Kaitaki - lost engine power while sailing Cook Strait with 800 passengers and 80 crew aboard. The same year, there was a gearbox issue with the ship and a heat exchanger issue on the Kaiārahi. Last year, the Aratere made headlines when it ran aground near Picton, which began with an autopilot mistake. Roy said this year to date, the ferries had been 99 percent reliable. "As we reduce the capacity, it's our job to keep those ferries running safe."
Otago Daily Times
19-05-2025
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
No 'considerable' price rises from Aratere retirement
Interislander ferry operator KiwiRail says with the Aratere gone, passengers may need to travel on less popular sailings or be more flexible with dates. But it says there will be no price-gouging or considerable increases to ticket prices. The Aratere Interislander ferry will retire by the end of August, meaning cuts to both passenger and freight capacity. The Aratere is the only ship that carries rail wagons, but cannot use the Picton or Wellington wharfs as they are being upgraded for two new ferries arriving in 2029. A temporary wharf would have cost $120 million. The ship can hold 650 passengers, 230 cars and 28 rail wagons. More than 2200 passenger bookings have already been transferred from Aratere to other vessels - the Kaitaki and Kaiārahi. Despite the Aratere being the only rail-enabled ferry, Kaitaki and Kaiārahi can carry rail freights by using road bridging. Interislander executive general manager Duncan Roy advised passengers to book their trips early, especially for peak season around Christmas time. "We don't have full ferries all the time with three [ferries], so we'd expect to have fuller ferries and, probably, people will be travelling at non-traditional times - earlier in the morning, later in the evening," he told RNZ. Roy would not say whether prices would increase after the Aratere retires, but assured there would be no price-gouging. "Nothing considerable... there could be a price increase anytime, but we watch our prices and monitor them like any good business. We work hard to keep the cost down." He said Interislander had dynamic pricing, meaning prices went up in times of high demand. Asked if customers may have to pay more because of reduced capacity, he replied: "That may be the case". 'Bad news' Union NZ spokesperson Victor Billot told RNZ job losses were "likely", but did not know how many would go. "We will be fighting for jobs. We can't afford to lose any more seafarers in New Zealand." Billot said there needed to be thought given into how the retirement of the Aratere would impact the security of supply chains between the North and South Islands. "This is going to reduce the resilience. It's going to lead to a higher risk of service failure if there is a problem with one of the other existing ferries. It's bad news, as far as we're concerned." Ferry operator Kiwirail had been under fire after multiple breakdowns in recent years left passengers stranded. In 2023, Interislander's largest ferry - the Kaitaki - lost engine power while sailing Cook Strait with 800 passengers and 80 crew aboard. The same year, there was a gearbox issue with the ship and a heat exchanger issue on the Kaiārahi. Last year, the Aratere made headlines when it ran aground near Picton, which began with an autopilot mistake. Roy said this year to date, the ferries had been 99 percent reliable. "As we reduce the capacity, it's our job to keep those ferries running safe."
