Legislative Council Wednesday 18 September 2019

Ms FORREST question to LEADER of the GOVERNMENT in the LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL, Mrs HISCUTT 

With regard to TasPorts’ Bass Island Line (BIL) please provide a copy of:

1. The Expression of Interest seeking a commercial operator for this service;

The Expression of Interest process that sought commercial operators' interest in Bass Island Line was a commercial in confidence process under the governance of a probity advisor. It is not appropriate to share commercially sensitive information relating to a service that operates in a competitive market.

2. The TasPorts’ Report into the suitability of the John Duigan prior to her purchase;

The procurement process that resulted in the purchase of the John Duigan was a commercial process and is inappropriate for public release.

3. Details of the work required for refurbishment and additional work needed to make the ship more fit for purpose; and

a. Details of the costs of this work.

Operational improvements to the John Duigan and the associated costs borne by TasPorts are not appropriate for public release given Bass Island Line operates in a competitive market with other privately owned operators. 

Following the recent market sounding exercise which confirmed that TasPorts is best placed to deliver this critical service in the longer term, TasPorts is committed to examining the commercial viability of developing a pathway to the next iteration of vessel.