Publication: Delivery of MV Glen Sannox and MV Glen Rosa - audit scope

In 2015, Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited (CMAL), awarded Ferguson Marine Engineering Limited (FMEL) a contract to design and build two new ferries for the Clyde and Hebrides network. These were expected to be finished in 2018 and cost a total of £97 million. 

In December 2019, the Scottish Government brought FMEL into public ownership and formed a new organisation – Ferguson Marine (Port Glasgow) Limited (FMPG) – to complete the vessels.  

The first vessel, MV Glen Sannox, was delivered six and half years later than planned and the second, the MV Glen Rosa, is due to be delivered in Summer 2026, eight years late. The cost to complete the vessels, since nationalisation, is now expected to be £335 million. 

The delays have affected the capacity and reliability of the West Coast ferry network. This has negatively affected island communities who rely on ferries to access goods and services.

This audit is important to independently assess the Scottish Government and its partners’ response to the challenges in delivering the vessels. It will draw wider lessons for the public sector when it takes on complex or commercial projects.