Aberdeen Harbour has high hopes for new cruise season
ABERDEEN Harbour said it expects 2013 to be a recordbreaking season for cruise vessel visits as it prepares to welcome the Island Sky,
writes Scott Wright.
The ship was due to get the cruise season under way at the port today with the first of three schedule visits this summer. With 12 visits by cruise liners scheduled, the harbour has high hopes it will be a bumper season.
Island Sky, known for its large suites and spacious outside decks, is calling into Aberdeen as part of tours to the Scottish islands and Scandinavia.
Aberdeen Harbour said many cruise ships vessels are now starting and ending their tours in the city.
Other ships booked to visit this summer include the Fram and the Plancius, which are making return visits, and first-time visitor the Ortelius.
DALES Marine Services has secured its long-term future after renewing its leases to operate at Aberdeen and Leith harbours by 20 years.
The company specialises in ship repair, maintenance and fabrication, largely for vessels engaged in the oil and gas sector.
Dale Proper ties, t he marine firm’s sister company, said the extension of the deals with Aberdeen Harbour Board and Forth Ports safeguarded 100 jobs and paved the way for the recruitment of an additional 100 contract staff and specialists.
Chris Antczak, director of parent company Dales Group, said the timing was important, given the fresh wave of investment in the North Sea oil and gas sector.
Mr Antczak said: “It was very important for us to ensure the future security of the company. There was the option for either Forth Ports or Aberdeen Harbour to say they no longer required the dry-dock facilities.
“Extending by 20 years gives us a great secure future, knowing that we are able to operate out of those facilities and invest in those facilities to ensure we are modern and competitive.”
Mr Antczak said that the wider oil and gas sector is enjoying greater confidence because of “the investment that is out there”. He added: “It is up to each and every company to try to perform the best for their clients.”
With the new leases in place, Mr Antczak revealed Aberdeen-based Dales was exploring the possibility of installing new dry-dock gates at Leith, which he described as a major engineering project given the age of the current gates.
Initial estimates suggest the project will cost at least £1 million to complete, though Mr Antczak emphasised it was still at the preliminary stage and was unable to comment on how it would be funded.
He said: “It is a preliminary investigation … so far we are looking at about the £1m-plus mark.”
The plans for Leith come about a year after the firm invested £400,000 to extend the fabrication workshop at Aberdeen harbour.
In addition to its presence in Aberdeen and Leith, Dales has a base in Montrose, giving it a strong footfold in the marine repair business on the east of the country.
It also works in other parts of Scotland, in north-east England and abroad, and supplements its work in the oil and gas sector by working on vessels engaged in diving and platform sports, Caledonian MacBrayne ferries and on the fishing fleet based in Aberdeen.