New Zealand owner KiwiRail is being prosecuted over a power failure on a ropax in 2023.
The 1,650-pax Interislander ferry Kaitaki (built 1995) suffered the outage in the Cook Strait between North Island and South Island as it was sailing into Wellington harbour on 28 January with more than 880 people on board.
The power failure resulted in a mayday call, but the Kaitaki was able to restore enough power to dock and safely disembark its passengers.
The RNZ website said an unspecified charge has been lodged by Maritime New Zealand under the Health & Safety at Work Act after an investigation lasting nearly a year.
The report said the owner could face a maximum fine of NZD 1.5m ($920,000).
Maritime New Zealand chief executive Kirstie Hewlett told RNZ that the operator’s safety and maintenance processes and procedures were investigated, interviews conducted and the ship was examined.
But no further comment is being made.
Non-negotiable
KiwiRail chief executive Peter Reidy said: “The safe and reliable operation of the Interislander service is an absolutely non-negotiable requirement for KiwiRail board and management.”
A full review of all asset management practices has been carried out, he added.
The country’s Maritime Union, which is backing the prosecution, said the incident showed that KiwiRail’s ageing ships should be replaced by the government.
It believes more breakdowns are likely if renewal does not take place.
KiwiRail has two other ships built in 1998, but two 1,900-pax vessels are being built at Hyundai Mipo Dockyard in South Korea for handover next year and in 2026.
The government allocated NZD 400m to the operator to order the vessels.
