The "Strait Feronia" was leaking oil into the Cook Strait - maybe for months - with no clear solution in sight. The leak was minor - five litres in a 24-hour period at most - but a fix for the problem would require a trip overseas to a dry dock. The leak was noticed in one of the Strait Feronia's two stem tube seals. There was an intermittent leak of oil that sometimes was nothing and some days was up to five litres. Bluebridge had been using expensive bio-degradable lubricant until the problem was fixed. The closest dry dock of sufficient size was in Sydney but it was a naval dock that was hard to get a slot in. The ferry was now using a biodegradable oil to minimise any potential environmental impact.