Ferguson ferry delayed again as building costs rise – Daily Business

Another week, another crisis in Scotland’s never-ending ferry story. The long-delayed Glen Rosa will cost another £35 million and its first passengers are unlikely to climb aboard until after next year’s Scottish elections.

Graeme Thomson, the newly-appointed chief executive of the Ferguson Marine shipyard, delivered news of the latest setback in a briefing to MSPs.

He said the current plan is to hand over the ferry in the second quarter of 2026, six years after it was originally meant to set sail.

The previous update had stated that it would be delivered to ferry operator CalMac in September this year.

The new handover date, together with a six week period for crew familiarisation with the vessel, means it could be well into next summer before it goes into service.

Meanwhile, the cost will rise from £150 million to at least £172.5m, with the possibility of it hitting £185m.

Glen Rosa and its sister ship Glen Sannox were commissioned in 2015 and were expected to cost £97m. The bill is now heading above £400m.

Mr Thomson said: “This is not the announcement we wanted to be making at this stage and cannot overstate our understanding of the importance of providing realistic handover schedules to support CalMac to provide a more reliable and robust service to the communities it serves.

“No one wants to see the swift delivery of MV Glen Rosa more than Ferguson Marine and we are committed to working hard to ensure the vessel is delivered within this window.

“We apologise unreservedly to islanders for this additional delay and want to assure everyone that we are working extremely hard to deliver a quality vessel that showcases the skill and experience of Clydebuilt ships.”

Kate Forbes, the SNP deputy first minister, said she had communicated her “disappointment and frustration” to the Ferguson board and acknowledged island communities deserve better.

She said is setting up a weekly review group, chaired by Ferguson Marine, to scrutinise the vessel’s delivery plan and ensure it is realistic, efficient and cost-effective.

“Ferguson Marine’s leadership must take immediate and sustained action to restore trust, enforce delivery discipline, and bring this project under control,” she said.

Scottish Conservatives transport spokesperson Sue Webber, said: “This astonishing news is a catastrophic blow for islanders, who have been betrayed at every turn by the SNP’s incompetence.

“It’s simply untenable that not a single SNP minister has been sacked for this never-ending chaos. I will be demanding answers from them in Parliament on behalf of islanders.”

West of Scotland Liberal Democrat MSP Jamie Greene said: “The severe delay announced is beyond anything expected and now raises serious questions for Scottish ministers.

“The MV Glen Rosa should have been delivered back in 2018, now islanders might have to wait until after the next Scottish Parliament election before this vessel enters service, which is a disgrace.

“The hard-working staff at Ferguson Marine have been let down by bosses, all paid huge sums of public cash, yet islanders are still waiting on their ferries. Not a single SNP minister has lost their job over this fiasco.  

“We demand an urgent statement to Parliament by the Cabinet Secretary for Transport to explain this enormous delay.”