Work has begun on extending Rotorua's Lakeland Queen.
Contractors have spent three days cutting the "Lady of the Lake" in half.
They will now spend about a week welding the two pieces to a new 10m section that will slot into the middle.
A crane was to be used today to lift the new section into place and a top floor is still to be added to that part of the paddle steamer.
Once finished, the vessel will be 32m long.
Project foreman Andy McGee from Lakeland Steel said that cutting the vessel in half was a difficult task, with three contractors working in confined spaces in darkness.
The vessel was bought last month by a consortium of local entrepreneurs calling themselves Lakeland Queen (2006) Ltd.
Mokoia Island Tours and Cruises, which previously operated the Lakeland Queen, had tried to attract big-spending tourists.
However, Majpie Investments Ltd, the company behind the Lake Rotorua paddle steamer cruises, went into receivership, owing creditors more than $850,000.
The new owners are aiming to have the boat operating again by October.
Co-owner Warren Harford said they had bought the steamer for an amount "around" the sale value of $350,000.
Mr Harford said he did not know what had happened to the crew who had worked on the paddle steamer before its owners went into receivership.
However, they would be welcome to apply for the 10 positions that would soon be advertised.
Receiver Anthony Harris has said Majpie Investments Ltd's secured creditor, Waikato Finance Ltd, which is owed $265,000, would be paid but it was still unknown if debts owed to Inland Revenue and 17 unsecured creditors would be repaid.
Mr Harris previously said that that was a matter for either the new owners or the liquidator if Majpie Investments Ltd went into liquidation.
Mr Harford said that paying the creditors was not the new owners' responsibility.
"We didn't purchase the business.
"All we purchased was the vessel," he said.
James Summers, a Mokoia Island Tours and Cruises director, yesterday said some staff who worked on the vessel before receivership were working for the new owners.
Others had been casual workers on short-term contracts that had expired.
Mr Summers would not comment on whether Inland Revenue and unsecured creditors would be repaid, or whether the company was going to be put into liquidation.
"I'm not going to comment on anything," he said.
New owners have big plans for 'Lady of the Lake'
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