After failed attempts to remove Taio Shipping vessel, the Grinna off Manihiki’s reef, the Secretary of Transport says a new plan needs to be made.

The MV Grinna II is deemed unsalvageable by all relevant parties. On Thursday two foreign fishing vessels attempted to pull the ship off the reef and sink it about a mile offshore.

Secretary of Transport, John Hosking said the vessels were unable to remove the ship so departed the area.

Hosking said the Ministry of Transport appreciated the support.

“Whether we try another attempt I will have to work that out with Taio shipping,” he said.

“I’ll have to go and sit down with Papa Tapi from Taio shipping, we will have to sort out a plan moving forward because she’s (Grinna) still sitting high and dry now.”

Hosking said removing the ship was the responsibility of the Ministry of Transport who would work with the Manihiki Island Council and Taio Shipping.

He said cutting the ship and taking it out in pieces was not a decision that had been made yet.

Hosking said the situation was similar to Moana Nui which ran aground in Nassau in January 2017 and was removed in late 2019.

He said the ship could be in Manihiki “for quite a while” but did not know how long for.

He said he did not know if there was a risk of the remaining diesel stuck inside the ship leaking on the reef.

“It depends on what the damage is… all I know is she’s taken in water but there have been no raptures of tanks or anything.

“From the photos that have been given to us, there’s no risk to the environment at this stage.”

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Mark Brown said being down a ship servicing the Pa Enua (Outer Islands) left the country in “a bit of a precarious position”.

“So I’ve asked the team to look at what we were doing pre-Covid which was the procurement of another inter-island vessel for us.”

Brown said it was something the Cook Islands was looking to work with the government of Japan on.

He said a new ship would be government-owned and would hold cargo and passengers.

However, he said the two remaining ships, Lady Moana and the barge, should be enough to service the Pa Enua for the time being.

“We do subsidise the shipping and we subsidise shipping to the Northern Group in particular because of the cost and the distance, so we may see an increase of the shipping subsidy to allow us to maintain a good working service to the outer islands.”

Brown said he was not sure if anything was being looked at to assist the stranded people on Rakahanga.

But it would be something that would end up being considered, he added.