The owner of stricken container ship the Rena has again issued an apology for the vessel's grounding and subsequent oil pollution on Bay of Plenty beaches.
The ship ran aground on Astrolabe Reef, 12 nautical miles off the coast of Tauranga, on 5 October.
Its owner, the Greek shipping company Costamare, first apologised not long after the vessel ran aground.
In a statement released on Friday it says it does so again with all sincerity.
The company says the efforts of its appointed salvors, along with the excellent support of Maritime New Zealand, mean just about all of the oil on board has been removed.
It says it thanks and congratulates them for their efforts and also thanks the thousands of volunteers who helped clean the beaches.
Costamare says its insurers are working closely with the salvors and will be paying for the cost of removing the oil from the ship and the costs involved in removing the cargo and the vessel.
Maritime New Zealand says 23 containers have now been removed from the ship.
Costamare says it will continue to assist the authorities with their investigation into the circumstances of the incident.
