TM’s maritime branch using two old vessels

Transport Malta’s (TM) Maritime Enforcement Unit (MEU) has been left with just two nine-year-old vessels to monitor Maltese waters.

Sources within TM told this newspaper that as a consequence of having only two small vessels, enforcement officers are unable to adequately monitor waters when a RHIB needs maintenance.

In 2021, TM had purchased five RHIBs to add to its fleet but these turned out to be unseaworthy. The matter had prompted a National Audit Office investigation, which found that the process to purchase the RHIBS was led by one person with insufficient overview from the other members of the team tasked with the project.

A few days ago, Nationalist Party spokesperson for maritime affairs, Ivan Castillo stated that between September and November of 2024, TM had been renting three RHIBs. Meanwhile, the authority had confirmed that the MEU only owned two RHIBs that were meant to patrol all of Malta and Gozo.

Sources told MaltaToday that for one week, both the unit’s vessels were grounded for maintenance works, leaving the maritime branch without vessels and unable to do its job.

This newspaper asked TM whether claims that the two remaining RHIBs are out of order and cannot be used are true. The authority stated that this was not true and that they had been used in previous months and are still in use.

“Obviously, from time to time they need to undergo regular maintenance just like every other machine,” a spokesperson said.

The current situation within the unit is understood to be a headache within the authority, as some fear that the unit will not have adequate resources to monitor the seas during summer, when leisure and commercial maritime activity are at their peak.

Despite this, TM assured this newspaper that it is following the NAO’s recommendations so that it can acquire more RHIBs for the unit.

In May 2024, the authority had told MaltaToday it was conducting “updated market research on technical specifications to ensure safety is prioritised in the procurement of new RHIBs”. So far, no tender has been issued let alone awarded.