TT-Line’s operations out of Geelong have started without the new vessels promised by the Liberal Government ahead of the 2018 election.
The government has completely botched the replacement of the Spirit of Tasmania vessels, with their delivery date blowing out to 2024 while Tasmanians struggle to get on board the existing ferries.
Before the 2018 election, the Liberals promised that the first of the new Spirit of Tasmania vessels would be delivered in 2021 and that Tasmanian businesses would be involved in the fit-out.
But after cancelling the original contract with German shipbuilder FSG, the former Premier Peter Gutwein announced a deal with Finnish builder RMC, before putting that on hold in 2020, only to backflip again and announce the Spirits would be built in Finland after all.
Not only did this delay the first vessel’s delivery, the government’s dithering and flip-flopping also blew out the cost of the project from $688 million to at least $850 million. Recent inflationary pressures could have added more to the price and it remains unclear what the total cost of the replacement of the vessels will be.
Capacity constraints across Bass Strait have limited Tasmania’s economic potential, causing headaches for exporters, tourists and locals travelling interstate.
The Liberal Government’s failure to replace the vessels in 2021 as promised is estimated to have cost the state $350 million a year in lost economic activity.
The botched vessel replacement program is another example of the government’s failure to deliver infrastructure projects.
Rebecca White MP
Tasmanian Labor Leader
Shadow Minister for Infrastructure
