KiwiRail investigated cutting back on the rail component of its stalled Interislander upgrade but rejected that on several grounds, the state-owned enterprise says.
Chief executive Peter Reidy said it carried out a “de-scoping exercise” to explore ways of reducing the cost of iReX project, which would see two new ferries replace the existing Interislander fleet and upgrades to ferry terminals in Wellington and Picton.
Finance Minister Nicola Willis pulled the plug on funding for the project on Thursday after the estimated cost of the work climbed to $3 billion.
Reidy said KiwiRail’s de-scoping exercise focussed on saving costs by “removing many of the rail elements” of the investment.
