The Spirit of Resolution ship arriving at Port Taranaki in New Plymouth.
A power failure aboard a container ship manoeuvring in Auckland's Manukau Harbour this morning led to its grounding - its second grounding in the harbour within five months.
The Spirit of Resolution, owned by Pacifica Shipping, lost power and grounded in soft mud while negotiating the main channel into Onehunga Port, Pacifica Shipping general manager of operations Steve Chapman said.
"Without power the ship lost steerage, which resulted in the grounding."
The cause of the power outage had not yet been determined, he said.
A tug was sent out and the ship had been refloated and was now anchored inside the harbour.
The tug will help the ship berth at Onehunga at high tide this evening so it can unload its cargo.
Maritime sources say the 3000 tonne ship hit a mudbank in the Wairopa Channel inside the harbour, near Titirangi, at around 11am today.
The ship has had a number of similar incidents including "bouncing" on the Manukau Head's bar recently and in 2005 it slammed into the old Mangere Bridge while trying to berth in high winds at the Onehunga Wharf.
Last August a Port Taranaki tug dashed up the coast to help Spirit of Resolution as it was damaged in big seas and developed steering issues after crossing the Manukau Harbour bar.
Spirit of Resolution ran aground in Manukau off Kauri Point, West Auckland, on the night of Feb 3 2011. Shortly after vessel was refloated with the help of tug. General cargo Spirit of Resolution IMO 9139127, dwt 4766, built 1997, flag New Zealand.