News

The ' Arrow' has been taken on long-term charter by the UK-based international infrastructure group Balfour Beatty to provide dedicated logistics support for SSEN Transmission’s Lewis Hub and Western Isles High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) Link in Scotland. The charter of a dedicated vessel for the project will not only strengthen project delivery, but will also help safeguard Caledonian MacBrayne's (CalMac's) existing Stornoway-Ullapool ferry service. The ship was currently coming to the end of a 12-month charter to DFDS, with the charter expiring on March 24, 2026. The Lewis Hub is a major energy project that will connect Scotland's Western Isles to Great Britain's mainland transmission network for the first time, using subsea cables. The Lewis Hub is a key part of the Western Isles HVDC Connection Project to establish a high voltage subsea and underground transmission link. A “release mechanism” in the charter will allow the ' Arrow' to be used by other companies when not required by SSEN Transmission, boosting resilience across the island’s essential lifeline ferry network, including during drydocking and scheduled maintenance of CalMac’s 'Loch Seaforth', which maintains the Stornoway-Ullapool link. The charter of the ' Arriw' followed close co-operation with Stornoway Port, Comhairle nan Eilean Scar and Ullapool Harbour Trust, with additional support from Transport Scotland, Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL) and CalMac, working together to identify freight solutions that avoid adding pressure to existing ferry services.

Brittany Ferries has secured the early purchase of the "Saint-Malo" and "Guillaume de Normandie," previously chartered from Stena RoRo by the Brittany and Normandy regions. This transfer of ownership eased the financial burden as the shipping company now has to contend with the carbon tax and finish repaying its state-guaranteed loan from the COVID-19 period. The original four-year charter agreement with an option to purchase the vessels, concluded with the Swedish company Stena RoRo for the two hybrid ships ended earlier than expected. The two joint ventures Sabenem and Somanor, respectively dependent on the Brittany and Normandy regions, voted for the early purchase of the ships.

The £1 million per month charter of the 'Alfred' from Pentland Ferries was due to expire on Feb 28), leaving CalMac with less resilience across the ferry network. The catamaran was due to head for an annual overhaul after having its charter extended several times over the past three years. There have been discussions about extending the charter again, potentially to cover gaps on other routes, like the Oban–Barra, where the 'Isle of Lewis' wass in extended dry dock stay. But Transport Scotland has stated that no extension has been agreed. The official charter expiry date ca,e as the new Turkish-built ferry 'Isle of Islay' arrived in Greenock on Feb 22. The new ferry was due to enter service in March, which CalMac hoping this would reduce the need for the 'Alfred’s continued hire. Originally announced in March 2023 as a nine-month charter to CalMac, the catamaran's charter has been extended on numerous occasions to provide backup for ferry services, including those in the Western Isles. The cost of the charter since May 2023 has reached more than £17 million, £3 million more than Pentland Ferries paid to buy the vessel outright in 2019. Meanwhile CalMac has announced the need for additional steelwork on the 'Isle of Lewis', so the company was reviewing deployment plans between early March and the end of May. Steel wastage was discovered on top of a fuel tank. This needed to be repaired to get the necessary regulatory approvals to return to service, and a temporary repair was unlikely to be possible. The drydock operator has advised that the timeline for the work could be up to three months. Fuel has been drained from the tank, and there was equipment including the sewage treatment plant, ballast pumps, fire pumps and associated pipework that needed to be removed to complete the steel renewal. The removal, reinstatement and commissioning of this equipment contributes to the timeline. The 'Isle of Lewis' will therefore not be available for the remainder of winter or the start of the summer timetable, and her overhaul was going to run through the 'Hebrides' (Feb 27-April 13), 'Loch Frisa' (March16-April 7) and 'Finlaggan' (April 20-May 8) planned overhauls.. However,. the 'Caledonian Isles' has returned to service this week, providing five returns per day between Ardrossan-Brodick. Works on the 'Glen Sannox' were virtually complete as well.

Brittany Ferries has secured the early purchase of the "Saint-Malo" and "Guillaume de Normandie," previously chartered from Stena RoRo by the Brittany and Normandy regions. This transfer of ownership eased the financial burden as the shipping company now has to contend with the carbon tax and finish repaying its state-guaranteed loan from the COVID-19 period. The original four-year charter agreement with an option to purchase the vessels, concluded with the Swedish company Stena RoRo for the two hybrid ships ended earlier than expected. The two joint ventures Sabenem and Somanor, respectively dependent on the Brittany and Normandy regions, voted for the early purchase of the ships.

The 'GNV Atlas', equipped with 257 cabins, has been employed as an accommodation vessel in the port of Filyos from the start of Feb 2026 for a period of six months. The vessel will house personnel working on the development of Turkey’s Sakarya oil field. The ferry was most recently operated by GNV on routes between Spain/France and Morocco.