Repairs to ageing CalMac ferry fleet nears £100m for past decade, figures show

The repair bill for eight of the largest of Scotland’s publicly-owned ferries has hit almost £100m in the past decade.

Figures released to the Scottish Conservatives by ferry operator CalMac show more than £98m was spent on the ships; the MV Argyle, MV Caledonian Isles, MV Finlaggan, MV Isle of Lewis, MV Isle of Mull, MV Loch Dunvegan, MV Loch Seaforth and MV Lord of the Isles.

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 in the coming years to replace the ageing ferries already in use.

Along with seven new small vessels currently out to tender, one third of the fleet is likely to soon be replaced.

The Caledonian Isles – which serves the route between Ardrossan in North Ayrshire and Brodick on the Isle of Arran – has seen the biggest repair bill of all of the vessels listed, costing 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.

Conservative transport spokeswoman Sue Webber hit out at the Government over the spending (Fraser Bremner/Daily Mail/PA). PA Media

Repairs to the MV Isle of Lewis cost just over £15.2m, with £14.6m spent on the Lord of the Isles and £14.4m on the MV Isle of Mull.

Tory transport spokeswoman Sue Webber accused the Scottish Government of running the ferry network “into the ground” and spending “eye-watering” sums on repairs.

She said: “The SNP have betrayed islanders at every turn and left them relying on out-of-date vessels.

“Taxpayers shouldn’t have to pick up the tab for the SNP’s incompetence.

“Targets have been missed time and time again under the SNP and it is high time that ministers were held to account for this appalling and unforgivable ferries fiasco.”

A spokeswoman for Transport Scotland said the Government is “committed to continuing our investment in our ferry services”.

The Caledonian Isles was out for service for a large part of last year (PA). PA Media

She added: “Delivering and deploying six new major vessels to serve Scotland’s ferry network from early 2025 is a priority for this Government and this will help alleviate the need for extensive repairs on older vessels.

“With the recent announcement around procurement of another seven small vessels, the replacement programme will provide more reliability of service, which is what islanders need and deserve.

“In the meantime, it is essential from a health, safety and reliability basis that maintenance and repairs are carried out on vessels where and when needed.

“Additional funding to support maintenance has been included in the CHFS (Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Services) contract year nine extension arrangements, and specific funding has also been provided for the major repairs to the MV Caledonian Isles to support the vessel’s return to service.”

A spokeswoman for Government-owned operator CalMac said: “This spend has been essential to maintaining a reliable ferry service to Scotland’s west coast communities, with a third of our fleet of vessels now operating beyond their life expectancy.

“Ship repair and maintenance activities are subject to wider regional and global market forces within the supply chain, which impacts cost.

“We have experienced very significant cost increases for the same services over the last few years due to these market conditions, alongside the increased costs due to the repair and maintenance requirements of an ageing fleet.”