Caledonian MacBrayne (CalMac), the ferry operator for Scotland’s islands, has confirmed it has initiated legal proceedings against Cammell Laird shipyard to recover millions of pounds in repair costs for the MV Caledonian Isles ferry.
In May 2024, the MV Caledonian Isles announced its withdrawal from service and proceeded to Cammell Laird for dry dock repairs, with the estimated repair project costing £5 million. However, after the shipyard completed the repairs, structural deformation defects emerged in the hull, resulting in an 18-month suspension of operations.
Following the discovery of the hull deformity, CalMac incurred a further cost of approximately £10.8 million in repairs, including subsequent works at Dales Marine. CalMac has confirmed it is taking steps to recover some of these costs from Cammell Laird.
A CalMac spokesperson stated: “Recovery efforts are currently underway. Given the commercial sensitivity of this matter and ongoing legal proceedings, the company is unable to disclose further information.”
CalMac faces many troubles in its ferry repair and construction projects. In addition to the maintenance dispute of the MV Caledonian Isles, the two LNG dual-fuel ferries, the MV Glen Sannox and the MV Glen Rosa, which the company ordered from Ferguson Shipyard in 2015, are also in trouble.
According to the original shipbuilding contract, Ferguson Shipyard was to deliver two newbuildings in 2018. However, due to the demanding technical specifications of the new vessels, the British shipyard’s unfamiliarity with the gas propulsion system, and contractual disputes, the delivery of the first vessel, the MV Glen Sannox, has been delayed seven years to November 2024, and the delivery of the second vessel, the MV Glen Rosa, has now been postponed to 2026 at the earliest. Not only that, including the write-off of bad debts, the cost of the project has increased from £97 million to £460 million, an increase of nearly 5 times.