Shipyard boss tells of 'risk' of further delays and cost increases to ferry

There is a “risk” the remaining ferry being built at Ferguson Marine will be delayed and costs could rise, MSPs have been told.

Officials from the yard, including the chairman and interim chief executive, appeared before the Public Audit Committee on Wednesday, just weeks after the first of two ferries built at Ferguson Marine – the Glen Sannox – entered service.

The Glen Rosa remains outstanding as the total cost of both vessels approaches £400 million – more than four times the initial £97m figure.

While the Glen Rosa is expected to be delivered in September, the yard has said there is a chance that will need to be extended.

Following a report in the Scotsman on Wednesday that the ferry could be further delayed because of parts being removed for use on the Glen Sannox, Scottish Conservative MSP Graham Simpson asked representatives of the yard about a potential delay.

Interim chief executive John Petticrew said: “We are in the process of doing a bottoms up on the Glen Rosa, including all the lessons learned that we got at the tail end of the Glen Sannox, and it’s our intention to provide a schedule to (chief financial officer David Dishon’s) department to then look at it cost wise and get something to the board, in the next two weeks, three weeks, by the end of February.”

Pressed on whether that will likely result in a delay, Mr Petticrew said he could not definitively comment.
Yard chairman Andrew Miller, who attempted to answer the question but was accused of “waffle” by the Tory MSP, added: “The answer is we don’t have the information to tell the committee.”

When pressed, Mr Miller said the yard has “the data” on issues with the ferry but it has yet to be verified.
Asked if there is a risk of further delay, Mr Petticrew added: “Yes, there is a risk.”