Coastal shipping revival seems dead in the water

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Opinion

It would seem the idea of revived coastal shipping is pretty much dead in the water, following the latest decisions within the industry.

Furthermore, as I commented earlier, taxpayer money has been swallowed up pursuing this idea.

An article by Jonathan Milne of Newsroom outlines the latest developments in proposals to revitalise New Zealand’s “blue highway”, which saw a brief service run between Gisborne and Napier in the wake of Cyclone Gabrielle.

Since then, Maersk shipping has withdrawn from the scene, Move Logistics has cancelled a plan to build a new coastal ship and service, and the refurbishment of a coastal barge is over budget and up to a year behind schedule.

All of this throws into question the $30-million funding the Labour government announced last year to help the sector bring new coastal ships into service.

As I said earlier, the taxpayer-funded Rangitata’s trips between Gisborne and Napier barely achieved a 50 percent loading, and could not be considered a viable commercial proposition.

With the huge spend on the district’s roading infrastructure about to really pick up speed, roads look likely to remain the major transport link for some time yet.

Roger Handford