Scotland’s state-owned Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited (CMAL) and Polish shipbuilder Remontowa Shipbuilding have signed a contract for the construction of seven new Loch-class electric ferries.
To remind, Remontowa was selected last month by CMAL to build the ship fleet under the “Small Vessel Replacement Program” initiated back in 2021.
Following a mandatory standstill period, the contract for the seven units has now been officially awarded.
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The newbuilds are expected to support island communities and improve the resilience of the Clyde and Hebrides ferry fleet. It is expected that the first ferry will be delivered in 2027.
As informed, the SVRP will see seven fully electric vessels built in this first phase. Three more will be delivered in phase two of the project, which will be procured through a separate competitive tender process later this year.
Phase one of the program is backed by a £160 million ($207.6 million) investment from the Scottish Government. The value of the shipbuilding contract is £147.5m, while the remaining £12.5m includes a 3% budget contingency and ancillary costs associated with the project.
“CMAL signing the contract to build seven new small vessels for the Clyde and Hebrides fleet is a significant step in our ferries improvement programme. When added to the six new major vessels joining the fleet in the coming years, these new electric vessels will mean that this Government has invested to renew around a third of CalMac’s entire fleet,” Fiona Hyslop , Cabinet Secretary for Transport, commented.
“As we work to rejuvenate the Scottish ferry fleet and accompanying infrastructure, we are replacing up to 16 new vessels in the next six years. Signing this contract for seven of them is a big step forward in our plans,” Kevin Hobbs , Chief Executive of CMAL, said.
“In 2011, Remontowa delivered the MV Finlaggan, and before that, the MV Bute and MV Argyle. We are confident the team will build and deliver high quality ferries which will benefit communities across Scotland with increased resilience and lower emissions.”
“We are looking forward to working in partnership with LMG Marin [ship design firm] and CMAL to design, build and deliver these new vessels,” Michał Jaguszewski , Director of Commerce at Remontowa, noted.
CMAL said it would now work closely with the yard to progress to the next phase of the contract, which will see detailed designs for the vessels completed.