Spirit of Tasmania IV: State government scraps lease plans, turns focus to bringing ship home

Following weeks of uncertainty, the state government has abandoned plans to lease out the Spirit of Tasmania IV ferry, which is currently docked in Scotland.

Spirit of Tasmania IV docked in Leith, Scotland. Picture: Tyson Scott

The new Spirit of Tasmania ferry currently docked in Scotland will no longer be leased out amid delayed berth upgrades in the state’s North-West as the Rockliff government confirms it will now look to bring the ship home to the island state.

The government has directed TT-Line to end existing lease negotiations and “continue preparations” to relocate Spirit IV – which is currently berthed at Leith, Scotland – to Tasmania.

It follows a report that Scotland was seeking to lease the ship to house Ukrainian refugees, which the Scottish government has since denied.

Minister for Transport Eric Abetz at Blackmans Bay.

Transport Minister Eric Abetz said TT-Line had been “engaging with a broker in good faith” but it had “become evident that an agreement will not be reached”.

“We have always acted in the best interests of the Tasmanian taxpayer,” he said.

“We had an opportunity to secure an agreement worth tens of millions of dollars for the Tasmanian taxpayer, and it would have been economically irresponsible not to explore this.

“Previous similar leases provided more than 50 million euros to vessel owners, and it was prudent that we sought similar arrangements for Tasmanian taxpayers.”

The minister said a further update in relation to the timeline for the ship’s relocation would be provided “in due course”.

Spirit IV has been berthed at Leith since November last year at an average weekly cost of $47,534 AUD for the first month and about $30,000 in subsequent months. This doesn’t include ancillary costs,

Spirit of Tasmania IV docked in Leith, Scotland. Picture: Tyson Scott

Crewing costs have amounted to an estimated $380,000 per month and the state government has previously said this figure would be the same no matter where the ship was located but would be “significantly higher” in Tasmania due to “differing domestic requirements”.

The long-delayed Berth 3 upgrade in Devonport, where the new Finnish-built Spirits are meant to dock, is not expected to be completed until February 2027.

A TT-Line spokesman said a “final actual figure” for the cost of keeping Spirit IV in Scotland would be provided “once all the costs are received”.

It’s not yet known where exactly the ship will be stored once it arrives in Tasmania.

Labor Treasury spokesman Josh Willie said the “ferry fiasco” was the “biggest infrastructure stuff-up” in the state’s history.

“TT-Line has been saying all along that it was highly unlikely that the Spirits would be leased but Premier Rockliff and the Liberal government had to spend millions of dollars of taxpayers’ money to try and save face,” he said.

“They’re finally coming home, which is the right decision. It’s the decision they should have made from the start. They can begin the local fit-out, the $100m that they promised for Tasmanian businesses.

“It’s exactly what they should have been doing from the start. It has been one stuff-up to the next and there seems to be no end in sight.”