How an unreliable boat makes Chatham Islands life harder | Q+A 2023 

Yeah remote island in the middle of nowhere, "oh lifes hard" move somewhere where it isn't

Is that a New Zealand built one or do you have import it from overseas? The one that is supposed to be delivered by 2025 is custom built. To be honest, our shipping industry needs a serious upgrade to compete on the global market especially with CBAM coming into full swing. Its pretty obvious that the Chatham's need a temporary replacement ship in the meantime until they can get their new ship. I don't know if NZFACT are going to provide one.

@@LauraTeAhoWhite That is simply looking at the cargo ship market, while i acknowledge the requirement for livestock, fuel and shipping container, the current ship is not up to requirements, yet they spent the equivalent to purchasing another ship in just maintenance last year. Now that sort of investment should drastically extend the service life of the vessel, more so when asset like ships are a zero sum game inwhich they are sold to scrap yards for $1. While i understand operating costs, at least for some i looked at would be $1000+ per day just in fuel, and a smaller vessels maybe cheaper to operate, you talking 10's of millions in excess which would easily cover any operational costs for decades. If you want a custom ship, China is producing ships at a phenomenal rate, why would you even look at a NZ company for the work? Are you having some hydrofoiling cargo ship thats powered by the wind? The customization, modifications don't need to be done in the construction phase, you can literally get a bulk carrier, even a used one and use any old engineering company to fit it out and i doubt the price tag would exceed $1million. My point im trying to make, they could have had a replacement ship the moment the payment by the government was made, by simply buying another ship. Secondly is you can buy two 2020 ships and operate them for decades with the funding they want for a new "custom" ship. The figures do not add up if you spend just 5mins looking at the cargo ship market. But you look at the price tag of milk, butter, as they say, everything is at least double the price, so what ever the price for a ship would be, there is a culture within that community to double it. That is what we are looking at, they have taken the highest price possibility, they have doubled it and then gone begging to the government for the funding. The Minister in charge should never have approved the funds, its wasteful, and ultimately should be put up for tender rather then monopolized by that Trust. I think everyone would be better off in there was some competition in the market, prices would drop, frequency would increase and you would see more growth in the Chatham aswell as surrounding islands as an ambitious new captain would seek other money making vultures rather then leeching off the governments purse like some vulture who ran their shipping company into the ground expecting a bailout because they are holding the island and its economy hostage until they get paid millions.

@@Unknown-gi1uj I agree that this has been handled terribly, I also agree that the government should have provided two ships. You can't approve funding for a new custom ship and expect people to wait until 2025 while they are struggling economically. At least provide a fully working one now.

Well you can't really blame the government for that, its the Trust that went down that avenue of maintenance repair rather then looking for another ship. Highly likely because how easy it would be to enrich themselves while doing it. Which is what im getting at, you have an ignorant government and a Trust taking them to the cleaners. @@LauraTeAhoWhite

@@Unknown-gi1uj I see what the problem is, the trust. Well, I'm glad that the party I did vote for is conducting an investigation. Hopefully this mess can be sorted out soon. If not, then I will have a few choice words to say at the next meeting because this situation is unethical.

It’s Jacinda

Lol that would be scary