The boss of the shipyard building two late and over-budget ferries has confirmed it will bid “aggressively” for a contract to build seven smaller vessels for CalMac.
John Petticrew, the interim chief executive at Ferguson Marine, said he is hopeful the Port Glasgow yard will be “in the ballpark” for the job.
There had been calls for the Scottish Government – which owns Ferguson Marine and CalMac – to directly award the tender for the new vessels to the yard.
But after meeting with staff, unions and management at the site on Thursday, deputy first minister and economy secretary Kate Forbes said there were “legal uncertainties” over whether that would have been possible.
There have also been suggestions Ferguson Marine could be barred from bidding for the work, with reports claiming the tender documents require companies to produce three examples of similar projects being delivered “in the last five years”.
PA MediaStaff at the yard have been working on the Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa ferries for CalMac, but both vessels are years late and significantly over budget.
Forbes stressed however that these ferries are “considerably more complex” than the seven smaller vessels.
She said: “By all accounts the Glen Sannox has been the most complex vessel that they have built and it is considerably more complex than the small vessels, which they have a track record in delivering.”
Forbes, who is the MSP for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch, added: “There is a number of vessels that operate in and round the islands I represent which were built by Fergusons pre-nationalisation, and they have also been delivering a number of vessels over the period they have been building the Glen Sannox and the Glen Rosa.
“I have confidence in the skills that are here, I don’t think it has ever been the skills that has been to blame for any of the challenges these vessels have faced.”
PA MediaHer comments came as Mr Petticrew – brought in after the sacking of his predecessor David Tydeman in March – confirmed Ferguson Marine will compete to build the small ferries.
He said: “We will bid for them, we will aggressively bid for them and hopefully we are in the ballpark.”
Asked if he was frustrated by the lack of a direct award, Mr Petticrew said: “Frustration is not the word.
“I think we need to invest in this company for the future, I think we need to concentrate on finishing these ferries right now, concentrate on getting the workforce to the standard we need to get for future work.
“We’ve got to look long-term rather than short-term.”
PA MediaAsked why the work should go to Ferguson Marine given the issues with the Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa, he added: “I can’t speak to the past. I have been here just over two-and-a-half months.
“We’ve made improvements, we made mistakes in the past, there were lessons learned, you are going to see those lessons learned going on to the Glen Rosa.”
He said the yard will have to bid against “unfair competition”, claiming foreign shipyards will be in the running which benefit from “their governments putting money into those shipyards”.
On Tuesday, the Scottish Government announced an investment of £14.2m in Ferguson Marine, with the cash to be targeted at modernisation work.
Mr Petticrew added he will be “disappointed” if the new contract goes to a foreign yard, but he is confident Ferguson Marine will still be in business in two years’ time.
He said the management is “looking at the overall business plan if we weren’t to get this contract”, stressing “there is other work out there”.
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