GUERNSEY’S government has lent Condor £26 million to keep its plan to buy a new conventional ferry afloat, it has emerged.
The ferry company was given the money to ‘prevent a potential emergency occurring’.
The new boat, the ‘Condor Islander’, which is currently operating between the North and South islands of New Zealand under the name MV Straitsman, is due to enter service in the autumn.
It was announced on 8 March that the roll on-roll off vessel would be used on the company’s routes between Guernsey, Jersey, the UK and France in a bid to improve connectivity.
Now it has emerged that Guernsey had to convene its emergency committee – known as the Civil Contingencies Authority – on 23 and 27 March to keep the plan afloat and that they instructed the island’s Policy and Resources Committee to intervene to ‘prevent a potential emergency occurring’. The States agreed for the loan to be repaid at a fixed rate of interest over ten years.
The States of Guernsey and Condor said this week they were jointly investing £3m each in securing the 125m-long vessel – despite having previously stated that £5m would be coming from the taxpayer-backed Guernsey Investment Fund.
Condor chief executive John Napton said the joint venture with Guernsey was ‘very good news for the Islands as it supports the three strands of the local economies – lifeline freight, connectivity for Islanders and inbound tourism – and is an important step in showing our long-term commitment to improving sea links’.
He added: ‘In addition, through this agreement, the States will receive a financial return from us over the next decade, after which Islander will become fully co-owned by the joint venture.’
