Mackay: Ferry delivery schedule must be set by October
Speaking after meeting board members at the shipyard, Mckay says the new delivery schedule for the two ferries must be set by October.
We have always been clear that we want to complete the vessels, secure jobs and give the yard a future. On Friday, I met with the excellent workforce and stressed the Scottish government’s commitment to achieving the best possible outcome for the yard. Today, I convened the first meeting of the newly-established programme review board and tasked them with establishing a new delivery schedule for both vessels and a revised cost window. This group will help assess the current situation and ensure the effective and efficient delivery schedule of the CMAL ferry contracts as quickly as possible.
Scottish government buys yard
The Ferguson shipyard is bought by the Scottish government. Ministers will now operate the yard under a management agreement with administrators Deloitte. The Scottish government wil buy the facility if no private buyer is found within four weeks. McColl, who could not persuade ministers to pay more than the £97m contract price for the disputed ferries, will no longer own the yard. The agreement means work on the CalMac ferries, and other contracts, can continue while efforts to find a commercial buyer get under way. Finance Secretary Mackay:
We have always been clear that we want to complete the vessels, secure jobs and give the yard a future. Public control will provide much-needed continuity of employment now and ensure the completion of the ferry contracts at the lowest possible cost to the taxpayer. It is absolutely essential that the outstanding contracts to build these two ferries are completed. [Putting the company into administration’ was not an outcome I was willing to consider.
Minister: Ferries may be ready next year
Transport Minister Matheson tells the Scottish Government’s rural economy and connectivity committee that the ships could be sailing next year but he admits there are there are questions about whether this will happen.
Where we are with these two vessels is simply not where any of us would want to be. We want to see these vessels being utilised and on routes. At the present moment, the indications are they expect both vessels to be completed next year, one in the earlier part of the year prior to the summer, and one later in the year. However, there are still some questions about their ability to keep to those timescales…Last August we had a £3.5m resilience fund provided to CalMac to assist them in maintaining their existing vessels, to try and help improve reliability and we will provide a further £4m in this financial year in order to allow that to continue to be supported, to help mitigate some of the risks associated with vessels going off service.
In response to West of Scotland Conservative MSP Jamie Greene, who asked when the ferrie would be ready, Mathieson said the delays were “disappointing”. The minister also said he had not personally visited the Port Glasgow shipyard to see progress on the ferries.
Government confirms summer 2019 delivery
Gibson confirms the MV Glen Sannox will enter service in the summer of 2019:
Regarding deployment of the Glen Sannox on the Ardrossan route, it was confirmed to me on August 14 through a parliamentary question that it will enter service next summer, with a June delivery followed by two months of crew familiarisation and sea trials.
Sturgeon launches MV Glen Sannox
The Glen Sannox is launched into the Clyde by Sturgeon, who says:
These state-of-the-art ferries are more sustainable, therefore contributing to Scotland’s world-leading climate change goals. They are also capable of carrying more vehicles and benefiting the communities that rely on them.
Ferguson Marine’s owner, Jim McColl:
The successful launch of the MV Glen Sannox marks an important milestone in Ferguson Marine’s journey to becoming a world-class shipyard. As this is the first ferry in the UK capable of being run on liquefied natural gas and marine gas oil, not only has this been an extremely exciting and ambitious project for both FMEL and CMAL, but it has been an extremely complex one as well. The experience and knowledge gained during this project will be of enormous benefit to the competitiveness of Scottish shipbuilding in the future as technology continues to develop to meet tightening clean energy legislation,
CMAL’s Kevin Hobbs:
The use of LNG in maritime transport is a sign of our ongoing commitment to exploring new fuel technologies for ferries, as well as a wider commitment to innovation in Scotland and consideration for the environmental impact of transport.
Ferguson’s wins £97m ferry contract
Ferguson’s wins a Scottish government contract to build two new ferries. The deal, which is worth about £97m, was confirmed at the SNP’s annual conference in Aberdeen by Transport Minister Derek McKay.