The statement said the Manahau was a “critical component” of efficient and sustainable sand shipping from Coast river ports to bulk export ships off the Coast.
The statement did not say how WMS would cope without the barge.
Mr Mudgway said WMS had planned its first ship-to-ship transfer, from the Manahau to an export ship, next week. He said ship-to-ship transfers were new to New Zealand but conducted daily worldwide.
“The crew on board have the requisite experience and qualifications to undertake these transfers in appropriate weather conditions,” Mr Mudgway said.
However, two former Westport harbourmasters, David Barnes and John Taylor, have expressed scepticism.
“The idea of transferring cargo in Buller Bay, in my view, has never been viable because of the swell that’s coming in,” Mr Taylor told The News earlier this week.
Mr Barnes said last weekend’s grounding had shown how dangerous Buller Bay could be.
Mr Mudgway’s statement said the Manahau was “specifically designed to navigate river bars like those in Buller and Grey”.
But experienced seafarers, including the two ex-harbourmasters, believe the Manahau is not fit for purpose. They said the barge was underpowered and had poor steering.
“They need a purpose-built ship,” Mr Barnes told The News earlier this week.
Another seafarer, Vince Scully, told Stuff his interview to captain the barge was cut short because he asked, “too many hard questions”. Mr Scully also said the barge was not fit-for-purpose.
The Maritime Union of New Zealand said the barge should be crewed by experienced New Zealand seafarers. It’s understood most of the 11 crew are Indonesian.
Mr Mudgway did not answer when asked for his response to the criticism.
His statement said the Manahau had taken 3500 tonnes of mineral sands to Nelson without incident a fortnight ago.
However, when the barge returned to Westport, weather and sea conditions forced it to anchor in Buller Bay. It spent a week there, with the crew reportedly running short of food, before it grounded on Carters Beach during a thunderstorm about midnight Saturday.
Critics have said it should not have left Golden Bay, given the weather forecast, and should have returned there when the weather deteriorated.
“The team at WMS is very disappointed about this incident,” Mr Mudgway’s statement said. “We pride ourselves on world-class operational practices. We are doing everything in our power to protect our crew and the environment and ensure this sort of incident never happens again.”
The News asked how WMS could claim “world-class operational practices” when its barge had run aground on its second voyage to Westport. Mr Mudgway did not respond.
Nor did he answer questions about how long repairs might take, whether WMS planned to bring the barge back into service and what would happen if the barge was written off or declared unsuitable.
WMS has resumed trucking sand to Nelson. Mr Mudgway did not respond to questions about when the next export shipment was due, how much the ship would take, where it was going to or what impact the Manahau’s beaching had had on shipping schedules.
Article Written By Lee Scanlon / Westport News
Originally published in the Westport News | Republished with permission
