40 | Providing an essential service to the Sounds Kenny Barging works with customers large and small—from government agencies and Port Marlborough to bach owners needing supplies delivered ahead of summer. Kenny Barging T T Kelly Deks REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT Kenny Barging has been a lifeline in the Marlborough Sounds for more than 165 years, and today the family-founded business continues to connect isolated communities and industries with the outside world. Logistics manager Ahren Watene-Jones says barging remains the only practical way to deliver essential infrastructure, materials, and services into many parts of Queen Charlotte Sound and beyond. “About a quarter of New Zealand’s coastline is in the Marlborough Sounds, and there are still so many places without road access,” he says. “Water taxis cover the smaller deliveries like food, but barging is the only way to get in heavy machinery, building supplies, or livestock. It’s a service that is still just as vital as it was back in 1857 when the Kenny family first started transporting goods from Picton.” Co-owned by O’Donnell Park Barging and Kenny family grandson and head skipper Liam Black since 2019, Kenny Barging has kept its whanau ownership in place and benefited from strong synergies between the two operations. In 2021, both companies joined Nautilus Pacific Maritime Contractors to purchase Johnson’s Barge Service in Havelock, strengthening marine services across Marlborough, Nelson, and D’Urville Island. Ahren says the team is proud to work alongside a wide range of commercial contractors, from aquaculture and forestry through to construction and earthworks. Projects can be as varied as demolishing and rebuilding jetties, delivering concrete trucks and pumps, or servicing salmon farms. “Our biggest barge was purpose-built for the Sounds by Gary Kenny himself, and it’s designed with a crane-offloading ramp that lets us land right on properties,” he says. “We can load anything from diggers and trucks through to bins and vehicles. It’s about finding practical solutions and making the job as easy as possible for the customer.” Kenny Barging also services hundreds of mooring clients, provides marina and on-water services, and still carries out stock runs for Marlborough farms. “It’s not unusual to back a stock truck onto the barge and deliver it to port, where it can carry on by road or even catch the ferry to the North Island,” Ahren says. “Some of our trips, especially out to Pelorus Sound, can take 12 hours there and back, so it’s a big commitment but it’s part of the job.” Kenny Barging’s history runs deep. Founded by Courtney and Georgiana Kenny in Double Cove in 1857, the business has passed through seven generations of Kennys. Over time, its services evolved from family and farm deliveries to passenger transport, mail runs, whaling support, dive charters, and eventually specialist barging. Gary and Valerie Kenny transitioned the company into a full barging service in 1980, operating until their retirement in 2019. Today, their grandson Liam Black is head skipper, continuing the family legacy. Ahren says Kenny Barging works with customers large and small—from government agencies and Port Marlborough to bach owners needing supplies delivered ahead of summer. “We’ve got big clients, but the little ones are just as important. Sometimes we’ll have gear from four or five customers on the same vessel, just to keep costs down and make it work for everyone.” As the Sounds prepares for another busy summer season, Kenny Barging is ready to keep delivering what isolated communities and industries need. “We’re proud of the history, but it’s also about the future,” Ahren says. “We want to keep being useful, keep being adaptable, and keep this service alive for the people who rely on it.” “About a quarter of New Zealand’s coastline is in the Marlborough Sounds, and there are still so many places without road access,” www.SignsNow.co.nz 03 573 5578 craig@SignsNow.co.nz Wrapping boats & anything that stays still long enough! Proudly supporting Kenny Barging Proudly Supporting: Kenny Barging Ltd Precision Water Jet Cutting 027 328 2553 info@h20cut.co.nz www.h20cut.co.nz
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