Michael Ferguson,Minister for Infrastructure and Transport
The Tasmanian majority Liberal Government welcomes confirmation that TT-Line Company Pty Ltd has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Finnish ship builder, Rauma Marine Constructions (RMC), to deliver the new Spirit of Tasmania vessels.
This follows mutual agreement between TT-Line and the Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesellschaft (FSG) shipyard to cancel the contracts.
Importantly, no payments to FSG have been made, and no payments will be made. Furthermore, the majority of the work undertaken to date on the new vessels by TT-Line and their expert consultants is transferrable and can be utilised in the detailed design phase and contract negotiations with the new shipbuilder.
I would like to commend TT-Line Board and Management for its prudent and responsible management of this significant investment, which has minimised exposure to the company and the State of Tasmania.
TT-Line will now commence contract negotiations with RMC, including final design specifications. This will include finalising the delivery date, for which the MOU targets late 2022 for hull 1 and late 2023 for hull 2.
Under this Government, TT-Line has enjoyed phenomenal success, with our plan to deliver more passengers and lower fares, as well as two new ships well within the 2028 timeframe.
The current Spirit of Tasmania ships continue to operate safely and efficiently, and are already emissions compliant as was required by 2020.
