CALEDONIAN ISLES

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£22m repair bill for Caledonian Isles

The repair of the 'Caledonian Isles' – which serves the route between Ardrossan and Brodick – has seen a repair bill of more than £22m. That includes more than £7m on work which kept the ferry out of service for the bulk of 2024, and it is not due back until the end of March 2025. Figures released to the Scottish Conservatives by the ferry operator CalMac show more than £98m was spent on the 'Argyle', 'Caledonian Isles', 'Finlaggan', 'Isle of Lewis', 'Isle of Mull', 'Loch Dunvegan', 'Loch Seaforth' and 'Lord of the Isles' in the past decade. Repairs to the 'Isle of Lewis' cost just over £15.2m, with £14.6m spent on the 'Lord of the Isles' and £14.4m on the 'Isle of Mull'. The fleet is currently undergoing a revamp, with six new vessels – including the massively late and over-budget 'Glen Sannox' and 'Glen Rosa' – due to enter service on the Arran route in the coming year to replace the ageing ferries, with a third of the fleet of vessels now operating beyond their life expectancy.

Technical issues caused further delay

The 'Caledonian Isles'’ return was further delayed as engineers had to deal with issues with mounting the starboard engine. An issue has occurred with securing the starboard main engine to the bedplate on the ferrym following extensive repairs in dry dock for over eight months in Birkenhead. The ship remained stationary as of Sep 20.

Return of CalMac ferry delayed further due to scope of works

Caledonian MacBrayne announced further delays to the return of the 'Caledonian Isles', which will be out of action until the end of August. The vessel was deemed unfit to return to service during its annual inspection at the Cammell Laird Yard in Birkenhead in January, leaving the main means of crossing between Ardrossan and Brodick relying on a single, smaller ship, the 'Isle of Arran'. In February, the ferry operator insisted the 'Caledonian Isles' would return in June, but this has now been revised until at least the end of August. The scope of repairs will take significantly longer than anticipated. The steel repair work required is understood to involve removing all the engines at a cost of £5 million. As part of the works, the auxiliary engines and their bedplates were removed from the vessel to allow access to the double bottom water ballast tank tops. The structure below the main engines is being supported using hydraulic jacks, whilst the steel around these engines is renewed. The main engines will need to be lifted off their bedplates to allow access under the engines for renewal of the tank top steel directly below the sump.