CalMac small ferries replacement spending delay

Ferguson Marine is hoping to win an order to build a new fleet of small vessels for CalMac. Concept design image supplied by CMAL.

Spending plans to replace CalMac's ageing fleet of small ferries have been pushed back, saving £41m.

Finance Secretary Shona Robison advised MSPs the small vessels replacement plan had been "reprofiled" as had harbour improvements at Ardrossan and Gourock.

Ms Robison told the BBC it meant spending would now fall in the next financial year.

The ageing small vessels fleet includes a ferry which is now 47 years old.

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The small vessels replacement programme (SVRP) would involve replacing seven ferries with all-electric boats in the first phase, with three more to follow in phase two.

The boss of nationalised shipyard Ferguson Marine in Port Glasgow is hopeful the yard will win the contract, securing the yard a future once it completes the overdue ferries Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa.

Earlier this month, the vessels director at ferries procurement agency CMAL told a meeting the procurement was due to start within weeks, with the first vessel to be delivered in the autumn of 2026.

But in a letter to Holyrood's finance committee last week, first reported by Scotland on Sunday, Ms Robison outlined a series of changes to spending plans for this financial year.

She said the small vessels plans had been "reprofiled, allowing time to fully consider the business case work, vessels design criteria, and help ensure alignment of the related shore power and port improvement works".

Asked on BBC Scotland's the Sunday Show if that meant a delay, she said: "CMAL have said the plans remain on track - the issue here is the profiling of the resources

"So instead of the resources being spent in 23/24 they will now be spent in 24/25 - so there's no change to the programme. The programme remains on track."

CalMac's small vessels include MV Isle of Cumbrae which was launched in 1976

A CMAL spokesperson said: "The SVRP programme is on track and the concept design phase is now complete. Payments will only become due when a shipbuilding contract is signed, which will be during financial year 2024/25."

In her letter, the minister also revealed £34m of "reprofiled" savings on port works, including reviews of plans to redevelop Ardrossan and Gourock.

Ardrossan requires major redevelopment, including the installation of LNG refuelling facilities, if the two new ferries Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa are to be able to use the harbour. Glen Sannox, which is due for delivery next spring, will start operations from Troon.

CalMac's smaller vessels include the oldest ferry in the fleet, MV Isle of Cumbrae, which was built by the Ailsa shipyard in Troon in 1976. It is currently deployed on the Tarbert Portavadie route.

Ferguson Marine chief executive David Tydeman believes the contract for the replacement vessels is important for the yard's future, potentially securing a pipeline of work that is well within the capability of the small Inverclyde shipyard.

Earlier this month, the Scottish government turned down his request for £25m for investment in new equipment and software which would raise productivity and help it compete in the open market.

Scottish Conservative transport spokesman Graham Simpson said the Scottish government was trying to "claw back" spending in what would be a "hammer blow for islanders".

"And it's ominous news for CMAL and Ferguson Marine, who said getting the small vessels replacement contracts sorted by the end of this year was a priority," he added.

"The SNP have already seen the dire consequences of their neglect, with constant breakdowns in an ageing fleet. Getting that sorted isn't just urgent. It's long overdue, and the fact they are kicking it down the road shows utter contempt for those who depend on these vital lifelines."