Pentland Ferries has today announced it has withdrawn from talks with CalMac Ferries on the potential charter of their vessel MV Pentalina to serve routes on the west coast of Scotland.
Managing director of Pentland Ferries, Andrew Banks, said: “While we were very much looking forward to working with CalMac Ferries to help provide a solution to the challenges being faced by the island communities on the west coast of Scotland, it has become clear that issues outwith our control are likely to arise over the lifespan of the contract to threaten the commercial viability.
“Unfortunately these issues, which fundamentally stem from the very different status of a public-
“I would like to stress that the talks with CalMac Ferries were positive and constructive and the vessel herself is safe and very suitable for service on the west coast. However, our priority has to be to the continued viability of Pentland Ferries, and to our employees and passengers. We cannot commit to a scenario whereby external factors have the potential to cause severe risk and reputational damage to the business that we have worked so hard to build, and unfortunately we have therefore let CalMac know of our decision.”
The MV Pentalina, which is currently in Kirkwall harbour, has held a Maritime Coastguard Agency (MCA) approved Passenger Ship Safety Certificate and has been Lloyds Register-
Robbie Drummond, Managing Director at CalMac, said: “CalMac has been investigating the use of the MV Pentalina to provide additional resilience to our network.
“Berthing trials had shown she could successfully operate services to Arran and Mull and we were looking forward to her deployment.
“Unfortunately, Pentland Ferries have decided not to enter into a charter agreement for the use of the MV Pentalina on our network.
“We are surprised and disappointed by this unexpected news. However, this was entirely a decision for Pentland Ferries in relation to the use of its vessel. We will continue to work closely with Transport Scotland and Pentland Ferries and should they revisit that decision and make the vessel available to us at a future date, we would consider this option again.
“Whilst disappointing, we were able to develop an understanding of where the vessel could be used and where there would be limitations as a result of the berthing trials and operational issues with the vessels single ended design.
“I know this news will also come as a great disappointment to our communities particularly those we had been discussing the detailed options with. I thank them for their patience and support as we continue to search for suitable alternatives available for charter to enhance capacity and resilience within our network.”
Cal Mac ferry charter offer withdrawn at last minute
29 June 2021
