Delayed yet again, new ferries built for CalMac

A £100MILLION green ferry deal has been hit with fresh delays, sparking fears of further disruption to services.

Two taxpayer-funded vessels are being built at the Ferguson Marine Engineering shipyard in Port Glasgow on the Clyde.

The dual-fuel ships were initially due to be with state-owned operator CalMac this summer and autumn.

But it was yesterday revealed this has been delayed – with the ferries now due to be finished next summer and spring 2020.

MSPs branded the situation a ‘complete shambles’ as they urged SNP ministers to ‘get a grip’ of the situation.

It follows the most severe disruption to CalMac services in eight years. Ferry bosses were forced to apologise in May after lengthy repairs to one of its main vessels, the MV Clansman, affected timetables across the stretched network.

Ferguson’s owner Jim McColl has previously blamed ‘extremely complex’ engineering works for disrupting the original schedule.

Scottish Tory transport spokesman Jamie Greene said: ‘Far from disappointing, this is a complete shambles.

‘Numerous stakeholders have long been warning about issues with the build of the new ferries.

‘Only recently the Scottish Government had to bail out Ferguson Marine with substantial money.

‘This is another entry in a catalogue of failures on Scotland’s ferry networks, once again letting island communities down and impacting tourism, businesses and connectivity.’

The first ferry – the MV Glen Sannox – is earmarked for service on the busy Ardrossan to Arran route around two months after sea trials next summer.

Launched by Nicola Sturgeon last November, delivery was delayed from May this year to winter 2018-19, before the latest snag.

The second ferry, known as Hull 802, is destined for the Uig Triangle between Skye, North Uist and Harris after delivery and tests in around 18 months’ time.

The latest postponement was announced by the Scottish Government in a written parliamentary answer.

Scottish Labour’s Colin Smyth said: ‘It really is time that Scottish Government got a grip before they do any more damage to Scotland’s island communities.

‘Demand for these services is rising and the Scottish Government are letting down our island communities by failing to deliver the ferries needed to meet that demand.’

Lib Dem Mike Rumbles said: ‘Passengers on the West Coast will have a sinking feeling when they find out these ferries are delayed.’

Transport Secretary Michael Matheson said: ‘Ferguson Marine Engineering has advised us that the first vessel, the MV Glen Sannox, will now be delivered during summer 2019, and the second vessel in spring 2020.

‘While this further delay is disappointing, it is important to focus on the fact that we will have two new ships joining the fleet serving the Clyde and Hebrides network that have been built in Scotland, providing vital support to our shipbuilding industry.’

‘This is a complete shambles’