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Katie Woolf spoke with Darwin Port Operations General Manager Ian Nibblock · 360 with Katie Woolf

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  Speaker 1: Joining us in the studio right now. Darwin Port Operations
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  Speaker 1: General Manager Ian Niblock.
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  Speaker 2: How are you, Ian, I'm great, Katie yourself.
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  Speaker 3: Yeah, really good.
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  Speaker 1: Great to see you and I know that there's always
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  Speaker 1: plenty happening at the port.
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  Speaker 3: But in some good news we sort of learned towards
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  Speaker 3: the end.
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  Speaker 1: I think it was of last week that some of
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  Speaker 1: those smaller expedition cruise ships we're going to be able
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  Speaker 1: to come to Darwin again. This is good news for
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  Speaker 1: not only tourism, but for you guys as well.
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  Speaker 2: Oh it is, and also for some very long standing
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  Speaker 2: customers of the port. So the under the Chief Health
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  Speaker 2: Officer's direction where there was the ships had to have
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  Speaker 2: less than one hundred people on board. The smallest of
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  Speaker 2: the fleet of three, the Coral Discoverer, arrived here on
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  Speaker 2: the twelfth, came from kens So we did a we
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  Speaker 2: worked with the Health department to do a cross border
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  Speaker 2: clearance similar to what you do at the airport in
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  Speaker 2: the cruise terminal at Darwin. They then went off did
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  Speaker 2: a few days cruising around a couple of sites in Darwin,
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  Speaker 2: just outside Darwin Harbor. Then new passengers joined on the
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  Speaker 2: sixteen and they've headed off to Western Australia, but in
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  Speaker 2: the meantime, the Chief Health Officer very kindly lifted the
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  Speaker 2: numbers from one hundred to a total of one hundred
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  Speaker 2: and fifty, which means that this company's two larger vessels,
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  Speaker 2: the Coral Explorer and a brand new ship, the Coral
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  Speaker 2: Geographer Geographer, will also be able to cruise. So we've
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  Speaker 2: now got bookings for those two ships, which is great.
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  Speaker 2: We've got forward bookings for all three of these ships,
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  Speaker 2: and we are hearing that some of the international smaller
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  Speaker 2: ships are trying to get on and get in, but
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  Speaker 2: so far there's federal government block stopping that.
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  Speaker 1: Well, which I guess I can understand at this point
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  Speaker 1: when it comes to those international ones. But as things
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  Speaker 1: become a bit more I don't know what the word is,
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  Speaker 1: a bit, a bit safer or change to some degree.
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  Speaker 1: No doubt that we'll see those changes too. But when
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  Speaker 1: you talk about these domestic ships, as you'd said there,
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  Speaker 1: they've now lifted those numbers to one hundred and fifty,
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  Speaker 1: they've got two of those larger vessels. What does it
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  Speaker 1: mean for the territory when you really talk about you know,
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  Speaker 1: people visiting.
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  Speaker 3: The end and being able to spend some cash, to put.
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  Speaker 2: It very bluntly, So I guess that you know, the
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  Speaker 2: people joining the ship will fly in. You know that
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  Speaker 2: they'll probably do a night or two or maybe even
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  Speaker 2: more in a hotel, they'll eat meals, they'll probably potentially
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  Speaker 2: hire a car, and you know, I'm just thinking what
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  Speaker 2: you could do. Then they'll join the ship and then
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  Speaker 2: they will disembark somewhere in w A. But then we'll
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  Speaker 2: get the people coming back the other way, will arrive
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  Speaker 2: in Darwin and they'll leave the ship. So potentially you've
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  Speaker 2: got that same opportunity of accommodation, meals, you know, car hire,
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  Speaker 2: all of those things, all of those good things. So
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  Speaker 2: it is really good for the territory and really good
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  Speaker 2: for our local businesses that you know you're getting. You're
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  Speaker 2: getting these numbers and you know, with one hundred and
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  Speaker 2: fifty total on board, you're probably going to have one
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  Speaker 2: hundred passengers if they're full because of the fifty thereabouts.
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  Speaker 3: Will be good, you're right, but still great, it's really good.
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  Speaker 3: Do you reckon we're going to see more of these.
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  Speaker 2: Well that's the whole that's the whole fleet for Coral,
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  Speaker 2: but will be.
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  Speaker 1: They'll sort of like they'll sort of be here a
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  Speaker 1: few times. That's just going to be like a one
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  Speaker 1: off visit. It'll be a few down the track as well.
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  Speaker 2: Oh no, definitely. So there's a whole swag of forward
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  Speaker 2: bookings for these ships right through and then we still
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  Speaker 2: have some larger vessel bookings from early October, and I
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  Speaker 2: think they're just sitting in there, I guess, waiting to
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  Speaker 2: see what the vaccination regime does and what have you.
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  Speaker 2: But know there's a you know, go on our website
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  Speaker 2: and have a look. There's a swag of these and
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  Speaker 2: do you know what, Cadie, it was so nice today
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  Speaker 2: that they arrived on the twelfth. I was down at
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  Speaker 2: Fort Hill Wharf just to see them come in and
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  Speaker 2: this smiley faces and people looking really happy to be there.
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  Speaker 2: And it was nice to welcome the captain and just
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  Speaker 2: say lovely to see you back. And you know, it's
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  Speaker 2: a happy environment and you've seen people finally able to
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  Speaker 2: travel again and go and do what they'd like to do.
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  Speaker 3: It's great. It is really good to see people around
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  Speaker 3: the place. I tell you what.
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  Speaker 1: Even you know, walking around town, you do see that
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  Speaker 1: there's visitors here. I was talking to people one day
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  Speaker 1: who I believe were from Ballarat. You know, you just
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  Speaker 1: sort of get talking to people that look like they're tourists,
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  Speaker 1: so you say, get eight of them, and you know,
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  Speaker 1: it is great to see some people here and out
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  Speaker 1: and about visiting our venues and really taking advantage of
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  Speaker 1: the great territory lifestyle.
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  Speaker 2: Absolutely, and I guess that, you know, with the dry
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  Speaker 2: season rapidly approaching, you were certainly seeing some hints of
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  Speaker 2: that at the moment. You know, I guess it would
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  Speaker 2: be great to think that we might have a really
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  Speaker 2: good tourist season, a great dry season, all those fabulous
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  Speaker 2: events that we normally run, looking forward to it so much.
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  Speaker 3: Absolutely, we certainly are well.
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  Speaker 1: Darunport Operations General Manager Ian Niblock. It is always good
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  Speaker 1: to catch up with you. Thanks so much for coming
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  Speaker 1: in this morning.
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  Speaker 2: Oh absolutely my pleasure always.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you And it is twenty two minutes after eleven o'clock.
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  Speaker 1: If you'd like to call through this morning eight nine
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  Speaker 1: four one one O four nine