TT Line has relocated the idle Bass Strait ro-pax Spirit of Tasmania IV from Corio Bay, Geelong to a lay-up berth at the former Williamstown Dockyard in Melbourne.
The vessel has been in Geelong since 20 October 2025 while it awaits entry into Devonport-Geelong service, which is dependent on the much-delayed completion of TT Line’s new Berth 3 terminal at East Devonport.
Spirit IV has been switching between Corio Bay anchorage, the Geelong terminal and an adjacent berth according to weather, bunkering, re-storing and crew change requirements. TT Line recently disclosed the ‘parking’ was costing almost $900,000 a month.
Spirit IV berthed at lunchtime today [11 March] on the northern side of Nelson Pier, which was most-recently used by shipyard owner BAE Systems as the fitting-out wharf for what would be commissioned as the Royal Australian Navy’s landing helicopter dock ships HMAS Adelaide and HMAS Canberra, the hulls of which were built in Spain.
Given TT Line at the weekend indicated sister ship Spirit of Tasmania V — now en route from Leith, Scotland — will also come to Melbourne, it might be reasonably assumed the ship will end up on the southern side of Nelson Pier. Conformation and comment has been sought from TT Line.
Nuship Adelaide at Melbourne. The bow of Nuship Canberra can be seen poking out behind the stern of Adelaide. The vessels were completed and outfitted here in 2014-2015. Image: Dale Crisp
The 16.81-hectare Dockyard site sits between Ann Street Pier and the tanker terminal at Gellibrand Pier and was offered for sale by tender in mid-2024, some years after the end of commercial and Naval activity, but nothing further has been reported.
Ship repair and construction on the site began in the mid-1800s under the auspices of the Colony of Victoria, and the still-extant Alfred Graving Dock was completed in 1974 for the Public Works Department, later the Melbourne Harbour Trust. During each World War the facility was requisitioned by the Commonwealth and remained in their hands until sale to AMECON (later renamed Tenix Defence) in 1987, and in turn BAE Systems.
The facility completed over 40 vessels for defence forces, including Australia’s eight ANZAC-class frigates (and two for the Royal New Zealand Navy), constructed/ assembled by AMECON between 1992 and 2006 and, subsequently the Navantia-built hulls of the Nuships Adelaide and Canberra were completed and outfitted in 2014-2015.