Ferguson shipyard shortlisted for new small ferries contract

The nationalised Ferguson shipyard has made it through to a shortlist of bidders to build seven small ferries for CalMac.

The Port Glasgow yard is among six firms invited to tender for the contract, having passed the pre-qualification stage.

The announcement by Transport Scotland is a boost for Ferguson Marine which has promised to bid "aggressively".

The firm believes the order, potentially worth £175m, could help it move forward after years of controversy over construction of two much larger and complex CalMac ships.

A Ferguson Marine spokesperson said: "This is excellent news and a testament to the FMPG team who prepared a robust submission for the first stage.

"We will focus on developing and submitting a strong bid to build the small vessels for CMAL, something the Ferguson Marine shipyard is well-placed to deliver.

"We have the people, skills, experience and detailed knowledge required."

The contract for the seven all-electric ferries, part of the Small Vessels Replacement Programme (SVRP), is due to be awarded next March.

Winning the contract is a key element of the firm's future strategy, potentially providing a workstream while £14m of government investment is used to raise productivity.

The 50m-long vessels are similar to three small ferries built on-time and on-budget by Ferguson's in the past.

The GMB union and some politicians previously called for the contract to be directly awarded to Ferguson's because of fears the yard would struggle to compete with overseas firms with lower overheads.

But that was rejected by the Scottish government, which said a direct award could be subject to legal challenge, leading to uncertainty and delay.

Kevin Hobbs, chief executive at government-owned ferries agency CMAL, said: "We received interest from many shipyards across the world, and carried out a robust assessment against set criteria, including their suitability to take on this project.

"Six shipyards scored the highest across the criteria, and have now been issued an ITT [Invitation to Tender] for the contract"

Thirteen firms expressed an interest in the contract. The six selected to bid were:

• Asenav (Chile)
• Cammell Laird (England)
• Cemre Marin Endustri (Turkey)
• Damen Offshore and Specialised Vessels (multi-national)
• Ferguson Marine (Scotland)
• Remontowa Shipbuilding (Poland)

Former Ferguson Marine chief executive David Tydeman, who was removed by the firm's board earlier this year, said some of the larger shipyards on the list would have the advantage of lower overheads including management costs.

"It's this last point where Ferguson needs hard work - its overheads are too high and need cutting from top down," he told BBC Scotland News.

"While I'm sure CMAL and Transport Scotland can justify the social premium for UK jobs vs the small extra cost for deliveries of ships from abroad, there will have to be consistency about protecting jobs in Liverpool with Cammell Laird and Ferguson Marine in Port Glasgow.

"And the decision is whether faster and cheaper delivery is the better choice for islanders jobs and businesses."

The Ferguson shipyard employs about 300 people, including 50 apprentices, but is running out of work as it completes the long-delayed Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa, the first UK-built ferries capable of running on liquefied natural gas (LNG)

Both ships were originally due to enter service six years ago but the build has been blighted by design challenges and a bitter dispute between the yard's former owner and CMAL over costs.

That saw the firm fall back into administration in 2019, when it was nationalised.

Glen Sannox was due to be finally handed over a week ago, but some issues that arose during acceptance trials have resulted in another delay.

Ferguson Marine said the ship was currently undergoing a further sea trial to check that a problem with one of the anchors has been remedied, and an updated delivery date would be given shortly.

Recent media reports of new problems with corroded pipework and cabling on Glen Sannox were inaccurate, the yard said

It confirmed that some equipment earmarked or installed on Glen Rosa was swapped over earlier this year but said this was normal practice for managing spare parts when two sister vessels were being constructed at the same shipyard.

Work is continuing on Glen Rosa, which is due for delivery next September. Much of that work will involve specialist contractors rather than the direct workforce.

Ferguson's is the only remaining shipyard on the lower Clyde and the last surviving commercial yard on a river which once dominated world shipbuilding.

The only other Clyde shipyards are the two BAE Systems yards in Glasgow that are focused on Royal Navy contracts where there is no overseas competition.

Ferguson Marine said recently that it was hoping to secure more sub-contracting on the Type 26 frigate programme from BAE.