Interislander Statement on Aratere

Tests to ensure the safe operation of Cook Strait ferry Aratere are continuing, Interislander general manager Thomas Davis said this morning.

Good progress has been made, but any resumption of services would depend on the result of the tests and the input of the Maritime NZ and Det Norske Veritas officials on board.

To minimize passenger disruption, Interislander has cancelled Aratere's scheduled passenger sailings today and tomorrow. Affected passengers have been offered alternative arrangements.

Aratere sailings will be freight-only till Tuesday November 8. The ship was scheduled not to sail on Sunday or Monday, before this disruption.

Mr Davis apologised to customers for the disruption, but said that safety is paramount for Interislander and Aratere would not resume services till Interislander was confident in its ability to sail properly.

"Interislander ships are crewed with experienced professional Masters and Chief Engineers who would not take their ships to sea unless they were confident in the ship and its ability to complete the sailing safely. Interislander takes a precautionary approach, and our customers can have confidence that they are in good hands."

A blackout test was successfully carried out on Wednesday night, and key repairs were done yesterday. A test is being held this morning in Wellington Harbour, running the ship's engines and power control systems to ensure they worked properly. This involves a full load engine failure test to simulate the failure that occurred on Monday evening.

Mr Davis said engine and power management technical experts Wartsila and ABB have been brought in to assist Interislander.

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