Cook Strait ferry project reaches milestone with shipyard letter of intent

Rail Minister Winston Peters says the letter of intent with a preferred shipbuilder is a key milestone for getting new Cook Strait ferries. (Image: NZME)

Oliver Lewis

Wed, 03 Sep 2025

The company set up to procure new Cook Strait ferries has signed a letter of intent with its preferred shipyard.The Government set up Ferry Holdings earlier this year after deciding not to fund the cost overruns of the previous Interislander replacement project (iReX), which had escalated in cost from an approved budget of $1.45 billion to around $3b.KiwiRail spent $671 million on the project, including $222m in deposits and settlements associated with broken contracts with Korean shipyard Hyundai Mipo Dockyard.On Wednesday, Rail Minister Winst...

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