New Zealand Compensates Samoa Following Naval Ship Wreck

Sat Oct 11 2025 06:13:37 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

After a naval accident led to environmental damage, New Zealand has provided financial support to Samoa to address the impact caused by the sinking of HMNZS Manawanui.

New Zealand's government has formally compensated Samoa with 10 million Samoan Tala (approximately NZD 6 million) after the naval ship HMNZS Manawanui sank while surveying Samoan waters last year. The incident resulted in oil leaks and environmental concerns, prompting the payment made at Samoa's request. The New Zealand Defence Force is completing investigations into the incident, which highlighted human errors as the primary cause of the crash.

New Zealand's government has paid Samoa 10m Samoan Tala (NZD 6m; £2.6m) after one of its naval ships crashed into a reef in Samoan waters before catching fire and sinking last year.

HMNZS Manawanui started leaking oil into the ocean after it sank, with reports of sea turtles dying and slicks appearing on nearby Samoan beaches.

New Zealand's Foreign Minister Winston Peters stated that the payment had been made at Samoa's request.

HMNZS Manawanui was the first ship New Zealand lost at sea since World War Two. It was one of nine ships in the country's small naval fleet, and had been surveying an area of sea floor that had not been mapped in decades when it ran aground.

All 75 people aboard were successfully rescued from the vessel as it began listing off the coast of the Samoan island Upolu exactly a year ago.

Despite being seen billowing smoke as it went down, Samoan officials later stated that not all its fuel had burnt off and that the ship had leaked oil from various locations - sparking concerns about local marine wildlife.

Since the ship's grounding, HMNZS Manawanui has remained on the reef but diesel fuel, oil and other pollutants have been removed from the ship while a New Zealand naval team was tasked with removing debris.

Peters emphasized that the New Zealand government was continuing to collaborate with Samoa regarding decisions related to the ship and its future.

We recognize the impact the sinking has had on local communities and acknowledge the disruption it caused, he said.

He added that minimizing any possible environmental impacts and supporting the response were our absolute priorities.

Any disciplinary proceedings were yet to be determined, but the New Zealand Defence Force was nearing the end of its investigation.

An inquiry into the incident found a series of human errors, including a failure to disengage the ship's autopilot, as the root cause of the crash.

In the days following the crash, social media users began trolling the ship's female captain, attributing blame to her gender. These comments were denounced by New Zealand's defence minister as armchair admirals.