Ferry Holdings Ltd is in charge of negotiating the procurement contracts for the new Interislander ferries. Photo: Supplied / Regan Ingley
Rail Minister Winston Peters has appointed Chris Mackenzie as the new chairperson of Ferry Holdings Limited.
The schedule 4a company has been charged with negotiating the procurement contracts for the two new Interislander ferries.
Peters said the new chair, deputy chair Heather Simpson and director Greg Lowe brought substantial and specific expertise for the no-nonsense delivery of cost-effective infrastructure.
Mackenzie led the negotiations to buy back New Zealand's rail assets in the late 2000s and was also independent chair of the Horizontal Infrastructure Governance Group involved in the Christchurch Rebuild.
Heather Simpson - a former chief of staff to the Prime Minister and an economics lecturer - brought significant experience in executing complex tasks, Peters said.
Lowe is the former global chief executive of Beca, former managing director of Beca Australia and a qualified marine engineer with previous shipbuilding experience.
"The new board will manage the contractual negotiations with shipyards, ports, and any other party required to deliver safe, reliable and resilient Interislander services into the future - working closely with us as shareholding ministers," Peters said.
"The board will undertake the procurement process for new ferries and report back to ministers for final decisions and similarly engage in the landside development planning and funding agreements with ports with decisions taken by ministers.
"This won't be cost-plus infrastructure like Project iReX - it will be a pragmatic appreciation of infrastructure that can continue in service while replacing only what is needed to safely and reliably operate new Interislander ferries," Peters said.
Cabinet will consider the procurement options - including any bids from the private sector - in March.
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