Malakoff completes ferry building contract

THE NEW 12-metre ferry due to serve the small west coast island of Kerrera was launched at Lerwick Harbour on Monday afternoon.

Built at the new Malakoff boatbuilding yard at the Greenhead Base for Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited (CMAL), the fabrication, construction and painting of the vessel took just 40 days.

Named the MV Carvoria, the vessel will now be loaded onto a chartered NorthLink ship before sailing to Aberdeen.

From there, she will be transported by road to Oban Harbour, where the final elements of the fit-out will be completed and the vessel will undergo berthing trials, before being handed over to operator CalMac Ferries.

CMAL chief executive Kevin Hobbs said: “The team at Malakoff has been working extremely hard to turnaround the build of our new ferry. They’ve done a fantastic job in 40 days to ensure we have the new ferry in place for the island of Kerrera later this month.

“The replacement ferry will offer islanders and visitors a more comfortable crossing and has greater cargo carrying capacity than the current ferry on the crossing. We look forward to handing it over for service in the coming week.”

The Carvoria is set to replace the existing ferry Gylen Lady. CalMac Ferries took over operating the route on 1 July this year.