The brand-new Spirit of Tasmania ferry, Spirit IV, has reached the North Sea on its journey from Finland to Scotland.
However, the ferry will not be heading to Tasmania anytime soon and will instead remain in Europe to be leased out in the coming months.
While ferry operator TT-Line looks into leasing options, it will be temporarily docked in Leith, close to Edinburgh, for at least a month.
This has Labor asking questions, with finance spokesperson Luke Edmunds wanting to know what the cost of the Scottish stopover will be to Tasmanian taxpayers.
Edmunds has called on the state government to be transparent and urged Premier Jeremy Rockliff to “come clean”.
“The Spirits have left Finland on a wing and a prayer about how much they’re actually going to pay to dock in Scotland,” he said.
“It’s emblematic of their poor skills at negotiating, how this hasn’t been stitched up before they actually dock.”
TT-Line estimates that the monthly cost of storing the Spirits in Scotland will be $1.2 million, with a previous government report estimating that both vessels will cost around $24.3 million to store until mid-2026.
Rockliff said that the cost details will be released once a final agreement is in place.
“A large part of the discussion has already occurred,” he said.
“But again, we’re waiting on the final parts of the agreement … and then, of course, everyone will be informed of the costs associated with that agreement.”
The journey from Rauma to Leith is expected to take just over three days to complete.
