Stalemate fears over Ardrossan harbour buyout

Campaigners fear a plan to bring Ardrossan harbour into public ownership to enable a major redevelopment has reached a stalemate.

The North Ayrshire port faces an uncertain future because two new CalMac ferries ordered for the Arran route are too big to fit the existing facilities.

Ministers announced earlier this year they hoped to buy the harbour from its owner Peel Ports so that the long-promised upgrade could finally progress.

The Save Ardrossan Harbour campaign says it has now been told the talks have stalled and an early resolution looks unlikely.

The Scottish government promised seven years ago that Ardrossan would remain the main gateway to Arran.

Ministers pledged to help fund the multi-million pound upgrade required to accommodate the new CalMac ferries MV Glen Sannox and MV Glen Rosa.

Since then costs have risen and the project has been left in limbo because of disagreements over how the bill should be split between the three partners; Peel Ports, North Ayrshire Council and the Scottish government.

It has been estimated the redevelopment could now cost £80m.

In February, Transport Secretary Fiona Hyslop revealed that money had been set aside to take the harbour into public ownership in an attempt to break the logjam.

But an update meeting involving government-owned ferries and ports body CMAL - which is leading the negotiations - has left the campaigners frustrated.

Christine Cowie, from Save Ardrossan Harbour, said previous assurances that things were "moving at pace" now appeared to be "totally wrong".

"They seem to have reached a stalemate," she told BBC Scotland News.

"There seems to be a gap between what the government is prepared to pay and what Peel Ports wants to accept."

After the meeting, also attended by representatives from Transport Scotland and CalMac, the campaigners wrote a letter to Peel Ports managing director Lewis McIntyre criticising the "the ongoing delay in finalising the long-awaited deal".

The letter says: "We understand from CMAL that an offer has now been made, and that they are currently awaiting a response from Peel Ports.

"This delay is not just administrative - it is actively harming the interests of Ardrossan, the Isle of Arran, and North Ayrshire as a whole."

Peel Ports responded by issuing a statement accusing public officials of failing to negotiate with sufficient urgency.

A spokesperson said: "We've entered negotiations in good faith, working with pace and energy to a timetable we believed was achievable.

"Unfortunately, that pace and energy hasn't been matched by those at the negotiating table.

"We appreciate that the buyers have other ferry issues to contend with but reaching a swift conclusion will require them to give this negotiation a higher priority."

Sources at Peel Ports said there had been no contact with CMAL for six weeks.

Ardrossan has now been without a ferry service to Arran since January, when MV Glen Sannox entered service - sailing instead from Troon - and a smaller vessel which was capable of berthing at the harbour was redeployed.

The campaigners say the town has suffered economically during this period, as many Arran residents often travel there for things like car repairs or dental appointments.

Sailings are due to resume in a fortnight's time when the old Arran ferry MV Caledonian Isles returns after 17 months of repairs, but that might only provide short-term relief.

Residents are worried that once the second of the ships, MV Glen Rosa, is delivered - currently expected next summer - it could lose its ferry connection once again.

CMAL said it was limited in what it could say during commercial negotiations but insisted it was working hard to find a resolution.

"CMAL are fully committed to maintaining a robust and resilient ferry service for the Isle of Arran, and no option is off the table," it said in a statement.

"However, we must also ensure we deliver the best value for the public purse."

A spokesperson for Transport Scotland said: "We absolutely understand people and communities' views in favour of retaining Ardrossan as the mainland port and their frustration that there is not yet more progress to report."

The government transport agency said a timeline for the harbour's redevelopment was dependent on a purchase being successful.

Ms Howie said the Ardrossan campaigners left the meeting with a sense that the purchase was far from guaranteed.

"At no time did any of them say we are committed to Ardrossan harbour and we're doing our best," she said.

"Quite honestly, we felt like we were just a nuisance being there."

When the business case for replacements ferries was drawn up in 2014 it stated that "no port modification work will be required to accommodate these vessels initial deployment".

But designs put forward by bidding shipyards to meet the ambitious specifications for the dual-fuel ships were heavier than either CMAL or CalMac expected.

Computer simulations on the chosen design involving CalMac captains found it would be difficult to berth such large ships at Ardrossan harbour which requires an awkward "handbrake turn".

Troon, about 15 miles further south, is capable of handling them but the crossing to Arran is longer, meaning only three daily sailings are scheduled instead of five.

The harbour at Ardrossan also benefits from direct train connections while at Troon there is a 15-minute walk from the port to the station.

The uncertainty over which port the new liquefied natural gas (LNG) ships will sail from has also left plans to install fast refuelling stations on hold.

CMAL awarded a £4.5m contract to build the facilities to a Danish firm in 2020.

The dual-fuel ships instead are currently refuelled with LNG directly from road tankers, a process that takes three times longer than filling up with diesel.