The impact on international shipping of the war in Iran is the latest issue to delay the disposal of a ship seized in a major drugs case, politicians have been told.
Revenue Commissioners chair Niall Cody told the Dáil’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) in December that the costs involved in berthing, maintaining and crewing the MV Matthew at the Port of Cork were at that stage almost €13 million, with each additional week adding about €110,000 to the bill.
He could not, he said, rule out the total reaching €20 million before the vessel was eventually disposed of.
On Thursday, Cody appeared before the committee again. He said he hoped the saga was nearing its conclusion but suggested the impact of the war in Iran on international shipping was now negatively affecting the disposal process.
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Revenue no longer expects to sell the ship, he said, but hopes instead that one of two interested parties will simply take it off its hands.
“We are very hopeful that we are getting closer to the end game,” Cody told the committee’s members, “but it still is a matter of clear uncertainty. And the uncertainty is kind of added to by events that are taking place internationally in relation to shipping.”
Cody previously said the 189-metre bulk cargo vessel with a 28,647 gross tonnage had a value of about €9 million when it was seized in September 2023 following a high-profile operation involving members of An Garda Síochána, the Army Ranger Wing and Revenue personnel in which 2,253kg of cocaine was uncovered.
He said “the value has declined considerably” as it had suffered significant damage during the raid, but said he did not want to comment on its remaining value due to commercial considerations.
In December 2024 the Special Criminal Court authorised the release of the vessel and the Revenue Commissioners concluded a bidding process which produced a preferred buyer.
The sale process was delayed, however, due to issues with the vessel’s Panamanian certification, which had been impacted, among other things, by its use for drug smuggling. On Thursday Cody, responding to questions from Séamus McGrath TD, told the committee these issues persist.
Revenue, he said, is now engaged with two parties interested in acquiring the ship – one for scrappage, the other with a view to returning it to service – but it is no longer expected that the transfer of ownership will involve any payment being obtained.
“I don’t anticipate that we’ll be getting a consideration for it,” Cody said. “The key is to get it out of Irish hands. If we can get to a stage where we can stop the mounting cost of keeping it ... I would regard that as a positive.”
Briefing documents previously provided to the committee suggested that because of the MV Matthew’s size it “represents a significant environmental and ecological risk, as well as an economic risk to the operations of the Port of Cork, requiring it to be crewed and maintained on a continuous basis”.
The costs at that stage were broken down as €3.128 million for berthing, €5.18 million for maintenance and €4.448 million for crewing. The ship is understood to require a crew of 13 on board at all times for maintenance purposes.
Last month the Tánaiste said in response to a parliamentary question that a survey of the ship needed to be carried out in order to complete the required certification process, and an external firm had been engaged to complete that process.*
*An earlier version of this article incorrectly reported that Mr Cody said the scale of the costs connected with seizing the MV Matthew could deter Revenue from seizing a vessel in such circumstances in the future. In fact, he had said that such costs would not deter Revenue and had told the Public Accounts Committee in December: “If something similar happens, we will do exactly the same thing”.
