How the war in Ukraine has affected the Spirit of Tasmania vessels
The war in Ukraine has had a flow on effect on the delivery date of the first Spirit of Tasmania replacement vessel. DETAILS>>
Tasmania
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The manufacturing of the first of two Spirit of Tasmania replacement vessels has been delayed, due to a flow on effect from the war in Ukraine.
When Finnish company, Rauma Marine Construction, began work on the first vessel in February, it was projected it would be complete and arrive in late 2023.
That due date has now been pushed out to early 2024, confirmed on the Spirit of Tasmania’s website.
“There’s quite a bit of work to do… a lot of planning still to go into these vessels before the first vessel arrives in now in the first quarter of 2024,” Spirit of Tasmania Managing Director and CEO Bernard Dwyer said on June 17.
“We’ve had discussions about steel, steel prices and steel availability because of the war on Ukraine.
“That’s put pressure on the first ship, not the second ship.”
Labor Leader Rebecca White said the process had been drawn out because of “flip-flopping” on the contract.
The original plan was to build the vessels with German shipbuilder FSG, before switching to RMC as the preferred builder.
That deal was put on hold in 2020 and later proceeded with.
“The fact is that if the government had kept its initial promise, Tasmanian businesses would have already been involved in supplying things like beds, cabins, specialty timbers, life rafts and other equipment,” Ms White said.
“But instead, there is one contract in place to supply content, the vessels won’t be here for at least another two years, and Tasmanians are having increasing difficulty booking passage across Bass Strait because there is not enough capacity on the existing Spirits.”
Infrastructure and transport minister Michael Ferguson said the humanitarian crisis affecting the steel supply was well and truly beyond the state government’s control.
“It is a testament to RMC’s commitment to this build that the war, which has destroyed so many lives and culture, has delayed our first ship’s arrival by only one quarter, and the second ship remains on time,” Mr Ferguson said.
“Claims that local Tasmanian businesses have been excluded from the fit-out is completely ridiculous and totally untrue – when in fact Tasmanian manufacturing for the new ships has already started, supporting local jobs.”
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