8chan/8kun QResearch SCOTLAND Posts (2)
#21262984 at 2024-07-22 00:21:53 (UTC+1)
Q Research Scotland #10: Humza In Hot Water Edition
>>21056454
https://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/news/13177423/shipyards-calmac-contract-failure-ferry-building/
FERRY FEUD Scandal-hit shipyard 'not able to bid for key contract' due to failure to build ferries
Ministers had been exploring a direct award to the shipyard, but were forced to put the contract out more widely this week
Conor Matchett
17 Jul 2024
TAXPAYER-owned shipyard Ferguson Marine might be barred from applying for a key contract due to its failure to build a single ferry in the last five years, we can reveal.
And its inability to deliver the Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa - now several years late and massively over budget - could see the future of the yard sink without a trace.
Ministers announced on Tuesday that the ferry procurement body CMAL had launched the process of ordering seven new small ferries for CalMac.
And details within the contract's tender documents reveal a requirement for any shipyard to show evidence of building at least three similar sized ferries in the last five years.
But Ferguson Marine has only successfully built one ship in that time period - a fishing boat - and has failed to deliver two lifeline ferries for islanders.
Failure to win the contract to build seven ferries could sink the shipyard altogether - with former yard bosses having warned it was crucial to the yard's future.
Ministers had been exploring a direct award to the shipyard, but were forced to put the contract out more widely this week - despite announcing ?14.2million of extra cash for Ferguson's to make the yard "more productive" and "sustainable".
Previous bosses at the shipyard have privately said the Small Vessel Replacement Programme is critical to the future of the yard because it needs a steady stream of work.
And the small ferries alongside work on Type 36 Frigates was seen as the perfect opportunity for the shipyard.
But tender documents state any prospective shipyard must "provide up to three examples of projects" which are similar to those small ferries.
And they add they must have been built and delivered "in the last five years".
However, Ferguson Marine has failed to build anything other than the two ferries sat in its docks, other than hull 805 - a fishing vessel - since it was nationalised in 2019.
A yard spokesperson said: "We appreciate the 'ask' within the tender and realise this is a requirement we will need to give some consideration to and how we may demonstrate our experience and readiness."
Scottish Labour transport spokesman Alex Rowley said it would be a "hammer blow" to the yard if it could not bid for the work.
He said: "The dedicated and skilled workers at this yard have been failed time and time again by this dysfunctional SNP government."
And Scottish Tory transport spokesman Douglas Lumsden said workers at the yard could "pay the price for the SNP's ferry scandal through no fault of their own".
He added: "SNP ministers who have left the future of the yard in limbo for far too long must come clean on whether Ferguson's will even be allowed to bid for this new contract, let alone be awarded it."
Scottish Lib Dem MSP Willie Rennie added: "This looks awfully ominous for Ferguson Marine.
The Scottish Government should say now whether the shipyard will even be able to bid to make these new boats.
"The decision to opt for a competitive tender process is risky as the yard needs a regular drumbeat of orders to make the most of its skilled workforce."
A spokesperson from CMAL said: "All new vessels we procure are done so through a competitive, open and transparent European tendering exercise. Any shipyard with an interest in bidding for the work is welcome to do so."
#20856771 at 2024-05-12 17:11:08 (UTC+1)
Q Research Scotland #10: Humza In Hot Water Edition
>>20849322
https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/scottish-news/fury-taxpayers-fork-out-35million-32790281
Fury as taxpayers fork out ?3.5MILLION on crew wages for SNP ferry that has never carried a passenger
The SNP Government hired 14 crew members to work on the MV Glen Sannox in 2022 - but two years later the vessel has still never entered service on the crisis-hit CalMac network
John Ferguson & Ben Borland
12 MAY 2024
Taxpayers have spent a staggering ?3.5million paying the wages for crew on one of CalMac's delayed ferries despite it not carrying a single passenger.
The Scottish Government hired 14 staff to work on the MV Glen Sannox in 2022 when officials believed the massively over-budget vessel was six months from completion. It was originally due to set sail in 2018.
But two years on, the crew have yet to work on the job they were hired to do and have been paid the huge sum in wages, the Sunday Mail revealed. One despairing Holyrood MSP said "I have my head in my hands" at the latest extraordinary twist in the SNP's ferry fiasco.
Scottish Conservative shadow transport minister Graham Simpson said: "CalMac must have crew ready for these vessels. The problem, of course, is that they have taken so long to build. CalMac were doing the right thing but they have been let down, as have our islanders, by this whole fiasco. It is just another example of how money has been wasted during this flawed project."
The Glen Sannox has yet to enter service after a catalogue of construction delays. The price tag for the vessel, along with a second ship the Glen Rosa, has grown from an initial estimate of ?97million to over ?360million.
The total wage bill includes three captains and 11 engineers while a further five officers were taken on last year. And Scottish Lib Dem economy spokesman Willie Rennie questioned why CalMac had "pushed on" with recruitment despite the possibility of further delays.
"I have my head in my hands," he said. "Yet more money wasted on these dreaded ferries. We know there were discussions about possible construction delays when CalMac decided to employ the crew members, which makes it particularly troubling that they pushed ahead with recruitment regardless.
"Bills, delays and disruptions are all islanders and taxpayers have ever known from these ferries. As one of his first acts, John Swinney must get a grip of this never-ending ferry fiasco."
And Scottish Labour's transport spokesman Alex Rowley said "The SNP's woeful mismanagement of this ferry project has left islanders stranded and taxpayers picking up the tab. Workers on both the ferry and at the shipyard have been left in the lurch by this incompetent SNP government and the chaos it has created. There must be no more delays or added costs to the delivery of these lifeline ferries."
The ship is currently docked on the Clyde near Ferguson Marine shipyard at Port Glasgow. It is now afloat and has been undergoing sea trials, although drone footage obtained by the Sunday Mail shows very few workers aboard.
CalMac boss says crew have provided cover across the network
Duncan Mackison, interim CEO of CalMac, said normal procedure is for senior crew staff to be hired six months before a new ferry launches. He said: "A number of senior crew already recruited to operate MV Glen Sannox have been working hard on both preparing the vessel for service and supporting existing CalMac operations.
"Three Masters and 11 engineers joined CalMac in February 2022, at a time when MV Glen Sannox was scheduled to be delivered in July 2022. An additional five officer roles were filled in November 2023, at a time when delivery was expected between March and May 2024.
"Senior crew members for any new vessel are required to attend the yard where the vessel is being built. Roles such as masters and senior engineers play a critical part in getting vessels ready to enter service and have developed operating procedures, work instructions and vessel familiarisation for MV Glen Sannox.
"Time for all of this is factored into recruitment and the crew members we have recruited have spent a significant amount of time at Ferguson Marine. They have provided cover and relief on other major vessels in our fleet at various points, allowing us to maintain services across the CalMac network.
"The recruitment process for a new vessel's crew is staggered, beginning with senior positions approximately six months in advance and progressively filling other roles as the delivery and then deployment date approached. The full crew is typically only in place four weeks prior to delivery.
"CalMac looks forward to taking delivery of MV Glen Sannox and getting her operationally ready to enter service and improve the service we provide to and from Arran. We have not recruited any crew for MV Glen Rosa yet and will follow due process as we have done with MV Glen Sannox."