Contract signed for seven electric loch-class ferries

Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL) has hired Remontowa Shipbuilding in Poland to build the vessels for the Clyde and Hebrides ferry fleet, with the first to be delivered in 2027.

The seven vessels are being built under the Small Vessel Replacement Programme (SVRP), with another three to be built in a second phase, which will undergo a separate competitive tender process later in the year.

Scottish taxpayers are funding the programme with £160 million, £147.5 million of which will be used to build the vessels, the rest for other ancillary costs.

“This is a significant step in our ferries improvement programme,” said Cabinet secretary for Transport Fiona Hyslop. “When added to the six new major vessels joining the fleet in the coming years, these new electric vessels will mean that this government has invested to renew around a third of CalMac’s entire fleet.”

CMAL chief executive Kevin Hobbs said the plan was to replace up to 16 new vessels over the next six years. The seven follow three others also built at the Polish shipyard.