The Scottish Government has announced its intention to award Ferguson Marine the contracts to build four vessels. This decision provides a guaranteed five-year pipeline of work.
The package of vessels as part of the proposed award includes the design and build of a new class of Marine Protection Vessel (MPV) and Marine Research Vessel (MRV) for Marine Scotland to replace MPV ‘Minna’ and MRV ‘Scotia,' originally built by Ferguson Marine and currently nearing the end of their service lives.
The additional vessels are two CalMac passenger ferries for Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited (CMAL) as part of the second phase of the Scottish Government’s Small Vessel Replacement Program. Ferguson Marine has constructed around a third of the vessels serving as part of the current CalMac fleet, many of which are operating well beyond their intended service life.
The Port Glasgow shipyard is a strategic national asset, which has been in operation for over a century and has been wholly owned by the Scottish Government since its nationalization in 2019.
Ferguson Marine is currently focused on the completion of MV Glen Rosa, ongoing work with BAE Systems on the Type 26 frigate program, and delivery of a transformation project that will modernize the shipyard. The shipyard will now work closely with the Scottish Government on a sequencing plan for this new work.