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Newbuilds Ferry Fiasco in Scotland As Soaring Costs Could Reach £400m

3rd October 2023
Newbuilds ferry fiasco as Scottish ministers are to carry out a review of soaring costs, which could reach £400m.
Newbuilds ferry fiasco as Scottish ministers are to carry out a review of soaring costs, which could reach £400m. Credit: heraldscotland/facebook

As the shipyard ferry fiasco in Scotland continues, ministers in Edinburgh have come under fire as new estimates suggest the cost of the dual-fuel powered newbuilds could reach £400m.

The figure for the CalMac ferries, does not include the millions pumped into the nationalised shipyard Ferguson Marine to keep it operating, amounts to over four times the £97m contract cost for the two lifeline ferries to serve on Arran on the Forth of Clyde.

Both newbuilds, Glen Sannox and the recently named twin, Glen Rosa following a public vote, still await delivery at the Inverclyde shipyard, downriver of Glasgow.

Chief executive of Ferguson Marine, David Tydeman indicated that it will cost an extra £240 million to build the ferries on top of what was previously spent before the nationalisation of the shipyard took place in 2019.

As The Herald, which more on the story, reports that £83.25 million was spent on the ferries prior to the Scottish Government taking control of the shipyard firm with an additional £45 million on loan.

Published in Shipyards
Jehan Ashmore

About The Author

Jehan Ashmore

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Jehan Ashmore is a marine correspondent, researcher and photographer, specialising in Irish ports, shipping and the ferry sector serving the UK and directly to mainland Europe. Jehan also occasionally writes a column, 'Maritime' Dalkey for the (Dalkey Community Council Newsletter) in addition to contributing to UK marine periodicals. 

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Shipyards

Afloat will be focusing on news and developments of shipyards with newbuilds taking shape on either slipways and building halls.

The common practice of shipbuilding using modular construction, requires several yards make specific block sections that are towed to a single designated yard and joined together to complete the ship before been launched or floated out.

In addition, outfitting quays is where internal work on electrical and passenger facilities is installed (or upgraded if the ship is already in service). This work may involve newbuilds towed to another specialist yard, before the newbuild is completed as a new ship or of the same class, designed from the shipyard 'in-house' or from a naval architect consultancy. Shipyards also carry out repair and maintenance, overhaul, refit, survey, and conversion, for example, the addition or removal of cabins within a superstructure. All this requires ships to enter graving /dry-docks or floating drydocks, to enable access to the entire vessel out of the water.

Asides from shipbuilding, marine engineering projects such as offshore installations take place and others have diversified in the construction of offshore renewable projects, from wind-turbines and related tower structures. When ships are decommissioned and need to be disposed of, some yards have recycling facilities to segregate materials, though other vessels are run ashore, i.e. 'beached' and broken up there on site. The scrapped metal can be sold and made into other items.