Latest news with #TTLine
BBC News
a day ago
- Business
- BBC News
Australian 'fiasco' ferry leaves Edinburgh for Tasmania
An Australian ferry forced to dock for six months in Edinburgh because it is too big to fit in a Tasmanian port has finally left of Tasmania IV, built in Finland, arrived at the Port of Leith in December due to issues with existing infrastructure in the city of cost overruns and other mistakes have caused a huge political row in Australia, leading to Tasmania's infrastructure minister and operator TT-Line's chairman resigning in August last vessel departed the city for Hobart on Monday, where it will undergo a final "fit-out" before its future crew undergo training, the company said. It is expected to complete the 14,857 nautical mile (27,515km) journey in about six Tasmanian government ordered the 212m-long (695 ft) vessel to leave Edinburgh, to be delivered to the island in March. But a technical issue with the liquid natural gas (LNG) fuel system in May meant its departure was further underwent sea trials in the North Sea in chief executive Chris Carbone said: "We expect the vessel will be alongside in Hobart in late-August for the final fit out of items including Tasmanian-made mattresses and table tops, cabin stores and artwork, and to undertake vessel crew training."The training for our crew involves emergency response exercises, passenger muster simulation, firefighting drills, deployment of lifeboats and the mass evacuation systems." Australia's ferries 'stuff up' The saga, which has a number of parallels with Scotland's own difficulties procuring new ferries, has been dubbed a "fiasco" and "stuff up" by opposition politicians. Spirit of Tasmania IV is one of two vessels set to replace two 30-year-old ferries on the Bass Strait between Tasmania and the Australian mainland state of the LNG ships are years late and the cost of building them has soared by A$94m (£47.5m) from A$850m (£430m) when the contract was signed in also emerged that the ships are too big to fit the harbour facilities in Devonport and the required upgrades will not be ready until 2026 or 2027. The cost of the harbour redevelopment, meanwhile, has more than quadrupled from an original estimate of A$90m (£45.5m). The ship was initially moved to Leith from a shipyard in Finland last year due to concerns it would be damaged by pack ice over the winter was paying A$47,534 (£24,031) per week to berth the ship at Forth Ports, according to figures published by the Tasmanian the ferry company TT-Line and ports firm TasPorts are state-owned, and in August 2024 the infrastructure minister, Michael Ferguson, and TT-line chairman, Mike Grainger, both Winter, leader of the opposition Labor party, described it as the "biggest infrastructure stuff up" in the state's history. It was initially reported the ship could spend up to three years in Leith before attempts were made to lease it to a European operator, but that did not work out. Mr Carbone, from TT-Line said the work to develop the new terminal at Devonport was now well under vessel will travel to Hobart via Gibraltar, the Cape Verde Islands, Cape Town in South Africa and Port Louis in will dock in Fremantle in Western Australia for about four days while customs paperwork is processed before making the final trip to Hobart in late-August.A spokesperson for Forth Ports said: "The Spirit of Tasmania departed Leith on Monday en-route for Australia."We wish her well on her journey."
ABC News
3 days ago
- Business
- ABC News
Spirit of Tasmania IV begins 27,000 km voyage to Hobart from Scotland
Spirit of Tasmania IV has departed Scotland and is bound for Hobart, with its expected arrival announced as "late-August". In a statement, ferry operator TT-Line said the new ferry left Leith on Monday and will "travel to Hobart via Gibraltar, Cape Verde Islands (off the western coast of Africa), Cape Town in South Africa, Port Louis in Mauritius and Fremantle in Western Australia". It is a 14,857 nautical mile, or 27,515 kilometre voyage to Hobart. Spirit IV and its sister ship Spirit V are the replacement vessels for the current Spirits I and II, which are almost 30 years old. The ship was expected to leave in May, but an issue was detected with its liquid natural gas (LNG) system. The Spirits replacement project has been troubled by delays and cost overruns, as well as the construction of their Devonport home berth not started in time for their arrival. TT-Line said Spirit of Tasmania IV was "required to stay in Fremantle for four days for vessel importation into Australia, Customs and Immigration formalities, a crew change, bunkers and fresh stores". TT-Line chief executive Chris Carbone said Spirit IV was expected to complete the voyage to Fremantle in about six weeks, weather permitting. "We expect the vessel will be alongside in Hobart in late August for the final fit-out of items including Tasmanian-made mattresses and table tops, cabin stores and artwork, and to undertake vessel crew training," Mr Carbone said. "The training for our crew involves emergency response exercises, passenger muster simulation, firefighting drills, deployment of lifeboats and the mass evacuation systems." Mr Carbone said the work to develop the new Spirit of Tasmania terminal at Devonport was "well underway". "We have seen significant progress to the passenger vehicle areas and freight yards," he said. "The team has begun the complex operation to install 27 marine piles for the wharf and the loading gantry. Nine have been completed." Spirit of Tasmania V was last week handed over to TT-Line and remains in Finland.
ABC News
7 days ago
- Business
- ABC News
Spirit of Tasmania V officially handed over to ferry operator TT-Line
The second of the two new Spirit of Tasmania ships has been handed over to TT-Line by Finnish ship-building company Rauma Marine Constructions (RMC). Spirit of Tasmania V was officially accepted by one of the Tasmanian ferry operator's directors, retired Rear Admiral Steve Gilmore, on Wednesday evening. TT-Line chief executive Chris Carbone said it marked "a significant milestone in our journey". A TT-Line spokesperson did not say when Spirit V was expected to set sail for Tasmania, or whether any further works or sea trials needed to be completed before it did. On Sunday, Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff said the other new ferry, Spirit of Tasmania IV, would arrive in Australia from Scotland in August. It follows a lengthy infrastructure debacle, when it emerged last year that TT-Line had failed to build a berth for the vessels in Devonport on time. It is not expected to be completed until at least October 2026. Spirit of Tasmania IV was then moved to a port in Scotland while the Liberal state government explored options to lease it out. It was expected to leave for Australia in May, but an issue was detected with its liquid natural gas system. RMC has since managed to modify the system, and the ship has been undertaking sea trials. Late last week, Mr Rockliff said Spirit IV's journey back to Australia would take about 10 weeks. The ship will head to Hobart where it will receive final fit-outs. TT-Line said as of late April, storing the vessel in Scotland had cost the Tasmanian government $4.3 million, including fuel, crew and port costs. The Spirit of Tasmania saga was one of three reasons listed on Labor's successful no-confidence motion against Mr Rockliff, which has led to the calling of a state election. During the election campaign, Labor has drawn attention to the many issues with the project and promised that both ships would be home before Christmas. On Sunday, Labor leader Dean Winter also said he would make sure the new ferries could refuel with locally produced LNG at their home port. "Refuelling with LNG is good for the environment, it's better for Devonport, it's better for passengers," he said.
ABC News
22-06-2025
- Business
- ABC News
One delayed Spirit of Tasmania ship to arrive in August, premier says
The newest Spirit of Tasmania ship is finally set to leave Europe and start heading to Tasmania in just over a week. It follows a lengthy saga involving mechanical delays and an infrastructure debacle. Spirit of Tasmania IV was due to leave Finland late last year, but ferry operator TT-Line failed to build its berth on time. The ship was then moved to a port in Scotland while the Liberal government explored options to lease it out. That is where it has been for the past six months. The ship was expected to leave in May, but then an issue was detected with its liquid natural gas (LNG) system. Finnish shipbuilder Rauma Marine Construction has managed to modify the system, and the ship has been undertaking sea trials. On Sunday, Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff revealed the ferry would be expected to leave Scotland and make its way to Australia in 10 days' time. He said the journey would take about six weeks, with the predicted arrival in August. The ship will head to Hobart where it will receive final fit-outs. Its berth in Devonport is not expected to be completed until at least October 2026. It is unclear what will happen to the ferry until it can be used to transport passengers between Tasmania and the mainland. The ship is one of two new ferries that were built in Finland. Spirit V is still undertaking sea trials. The Spirit of Tasmania saga was one of three reasons listed on Labor's successful no-confidence motion against the Premier. The no-confidence motion eventually led to the calling of the election. During its campaign, Labor has drawn attention to the many issues with the project and promised that both ships would be home before Christmas. On Sunday, Labor leader Dean Winter also said he would make sure the new ferries could refuel with locally produced LNG at their home port. The two new ferries have a dual fuel system, meaning that they can run on both diesel and LNG. Mr Winter said upgrading the LNG facilities in Devonport will trigger more that $70 million in private investment and create 150 construction jobs and 15 ongoing roles. Tasmanian Gas Pipeline chief executive Wacek Lipski said this was not new technology and the fact private companies ran on it proved it made economic sense. "All up there's 50,000 tonnes of carbon emissions to be saved by switching to LNG," Mr Lipski said. "The vessels are covered by safeguard mechanisms … [that] means the vessels must reduce emissions now and by 2030 be 43 per cent from where they are now. Mr Lipski said his company had the capital and technical knowledge to take on the project, it just needed an agreement with ferry operator TT-Line. The Liberals said all refuelling options were being planned for. "These are matters that are already being addressed by TT-Line," Mr Rockliff said. "All options will be canvassed to ensure that we do have the right infrastructure."
ABC News
28-05-2025
- Business
- ABC News
New problems with Spirit of Tasmania ferries delay arrival again
Both of Tasmania's brand new Bass Strait ferries have "technical issues" and their departure for Australia will be delayed, the government has said. The new Spirit of Tasmania ferries, Spirit IV and V, have been built in Finland by shipbuilder Rauma Marine Construction and have been undergoing testing and preparations to travel to Tasmania. Spirit IV has been docked in Scotland in recent months and was due to leave for Tasmania on Monday, May 26, but TT-Line said in a statement on Monday that inclement weather had prevented its departure. In a statement this morning, Minister for Transport Eric Abetz said TT-Line had advised the government an issue with the liquefied natural gas systems on board both ships had been identified. "RMC has advised TT-Line that the issue needs further assessment and rectification, and as a result Spirit IV will not depart for Australia until the work is completed," Mr Abetz said. "The government is awaiting further details in relation to a new expected departure date, but it is understood that this work will take some time." He said that any necessary repair costs will be covered under warranty with RMC, and that TT-Line had representatives on the ground in Finland and was engaging with the company. "The ship will be relocated to Hobart as soon as possible for final fit-out," Mr Abetz said.
