New Turkish-built CalMac ferry delayed by two months

CMAL said the construction and workmanship of Isle of Islay is progressing well

The first of four new CalMac ferries being built by a shipyard in Turkey will be delivered late.

MV Isle of Islay had been expected to be handed over in mid October – but this has been put back to near the end of the year.

The Cemre shipyard blamed delays in delivery of equipment and materials, due to global supply chain difficulties.

The announcement comes at a difficult time for CalMac with two of its 10 major vessels currently out of action and a third due to be retired in November.

Another ferry, the much-delayed Glen Sannox, being built by the Ferguson shipyard, will not be handed over until late September and will require several weeks of crew familiarisation before it comes into service.

News of the problems with delivery of the Turkish ferry came in a letter to MSPs from Kevin Hobbs, chief executive of the government-owned ferries procurement company CMAL.

In the letter, Mr Hobbs said: "There have been major challenges the yard has had to overcome in the programme; the war in Ukraine affecting the supply of steel, the devastating earthquakes in south-eastern Turkey, which led to a serious loss of manpower in the shipyard, with many of the workers in the yard and subcontractors travelling to the region to assist in the rescue operations.

"I can report the quality of the workmanship and construction of the vessel is fully meeting requirements, with high levels of activity, supervision, engineering and co-ordination.

"The relationship between CMAL, CalMac and Cemre is strong and we are working together every day to achieve the ships that will serve Island communities for many years to come."

One of CalMac's oldest ferries, MV Hebridean Isles, will be withdrawn from service in November

MV Isle of Islay - destined for the Islay route - is the first of the new Islay class vessels, with MV Loch Indaal due to follow next year and two other ships also on order.

They are slightly smaller than the two ships being built at Ferguson’s, with conventional engines and some battery power.

CalMac chief executive Duncan Mackison said: “Unfortunately, global supply chain issues are outwith every agency’s control and have caused a slight delay to what has otherwise been a faultless process.

"CalMac crew for the new vessel are on-site at the shipyard to support the final stages of the build, and we stand ready to take delivery of MV Isle of Islay as soon as she is ready.”

CalMac is continuing to face pressure maintaining its fleet, with many ships now beyond their expected service life.

The main Arran ferry Caledonian Isles has not been in service since February, and has been undergoing major steelwork repairs in Merseyside.

That work has now been completed, but new repairs are being done to a bulkhead that was damaged when a ballast tank was over pressurised.

The ship could be back in service by the end of August but this could now slip to September.

Lord of the Isles is now in Greenock to establish how badly it has been damaged

Another major vessel, Lord of the Isles, which serves South Uist, is out of action after an engine fire on Tuesday.

The ship is due to arrive in Greenock on Friday afternoon where an assessment of the damage will be carried out.

A third major vessel, the 38-year-old Hebridean Isles, is due to be scrapped in November because it would require expensive and lengthy work to keep it in service.

The delivery date for Glen Sannox, being built at Ferguson’s and due to serve the Arran route, has also been put back recently because of problems completing its LNG propulsion system, and will not be handed over until the end of September.