CalMac's three hybrid ferries cost nearly £1.5m to maintain

Three CalMac ferries which cost £34 million to build a decade ago ran up a maintenance bill of nearly £1.5m last year, the operator has confirmed.

Hallaig, Lochinvar and Catriona were built at the Ferguson Marine yard in Port Glasgow as a new generation of hybrid vessels that can operate on diesel and electric power on some of CalMac’s shorter west coast routes.

Hallaig was the first of CalMac's hybrid diesel-electric ferries built by Ferguson Marine in 2012 | CalMac

However, their costs are increasing because the batteries on the ferries, built between 2012 and 2016, are coming to end of their life and need replacing.

CalMac said the annual maintenance cost of Hallaig in 2023-24 was £530,000 and £460,000 each for Lochinvar and Catriona.

Hallaig operates between Sconser on Skye and Raasay, Lochinvar runs between Lochaline in Morven and Fishnish on Mull, while Catriona serves routes including Lochranza on Arran to Claonaig in Kintyre.

CalMac said it had started the process, along with vessel owner Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited, of replacing the Hallaig and Lochinvar’s original batteries in 2022.

A CalMac spokesperson said: “As the original battery manufacturer for Hallaig and Lochinvar ceased trading, combined with the advancement of battery technology, sourcing, procuring, and designing a solution has been challenging.

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“The battery replacements are planned to be completed by April 2027.

“As with all vessels, it is natural for maintenance costs to increase as they age, with rising levels of inspections required and higher levels of work needing to be carried out.

“Maintenance spend is also affected by factors including regulatory compliance. We have also seen significant cost increases in recent years in the global supply chain, in line with inflation.”

The Scottish Liberal Democrats expressed concern about the increasing costs.

Economy spokesperson Willie Rennie said: “If we are to spend large sums of money on ferries, we need to know that they work and maintenance costs are reasonable.

“So CalMac must be open and transparent about costs and breakdowns. It’s the least the islanders and taxpayers deserve.”

Ferguson Marine, which was nationalised by the Scottish Government in 2019, is among six shortlisted for CalMac’s next generation of small electric ferries for similar routes, with the winner expected to be announced in March.