Glen Sannox on slipway, two sections of Hull 802 (Glen Rosa) to the right, as of June 2017December 2021, Hull 802 on slipway with bulbous bow in place, hull section being added
Of the six shipyards biding for fixed price contracts to design and build the two ships, Ferguson Marine (FMEL), owned by Jim McColl, was the only Scottish bidder. During negotiations, the government named FMEL as preferred tenderer,[10] though it had just told CMAL that it could not provide the contractually required bank-backed guarantee. FMEL had already discussed this with Scottish Government ministers, who now decided the government would take on the risks, and the contracts were awarded on 16 October 2015.[11][12]
The ships were to be delivered by July 2018, but FMEL began construction before providing drawings and plans for approval, with increasing delays when work had to be redone. In July 2017, FMEL denied responsibly and claimed additional costs, CMAL dismissed the claims. The dispute escalated with further delays. FMEL went into administration,[11][12] and in December 2019 the shipyard was nationalised as Ferguson Marine (Port Glasgow) Ltd.,[13] but increasing costs and further lengthy delays became a continuing political scandal,[14][15][16] the "ferry fiasco".[17][18]
The sister ship, Glen Sannox, had been substantially incomplete when launched on 21 November 2017 and moved to the shipyard's Newark Quay, freeing the slipway for the two sections of Hull 802 (Glen Rosa) to be brought together.
Glen Rosa was expected to be launched in 2018, and to enter service the following year.[21] However, along with her sister ship, she has been the subject of increased costs and lengthy delays to her construction. Following delays to both ships and nationalisation of the shipyard, the second ferry was estimated in December 2019 to be delivered to CMAL in summer 2022.[22] There were delays due to the pandemic and shortages of skilled labour, and in June 2021 delivery was rescheduled for April 2023 to July 2023.[23] At the start of September 2021, installation of the bulbous bow, as well as stern sections, was reported as marking significant progress.[24]
Additional delays
Further delays in early 2022 saw the delivery date slip to October–December 2023.[25] The ship's delivery date was delayed again in September 2022 to the first quarter of 2024.[26] As of August 2023, the expected launch date was March 2024, with the vessel due to enter service by the end of 2024.[7][8] By the end of September 2023, however, Ferguson chief executive David Tydeman told the Scottish Government’s Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee that MV Glen Rosa had been further delayed and that its completion date had been pushed back from the end of 2024 to the end of May 2025.[18]
Naming
A public poll was run in August 2023 to choose a name for the vessel, which had previously been referred to as "Hull 802", from a shortlist of Claymore, Glen Cloy and Glen Rosa.[7]Glen Rosa was announced as the name on 31 August 2023, having been selected by 52% out of a total vote of nearly 5,000 entries.[8]
Further delays
On 10 November 2023, it was announced that the launch date for Glen Rosa had been set as 12 March 2024, but this was later pushed back to 9 April following additional delays to Glen Sannox,[27] which was fitted out at the shipyard's Newark Quay, and had begun sea trials on 13 February. It moved 1.3 miles (2.1 km) downriver to Inchgreen Quay, Greenock. As of November 2024, the expected delivery date is September 2025.[9]
Ceremonial ship launch
Public waiting to attend the launch
As the ceremonial ship launching neared, Ferguson Marine lacked new orders, and was under threat of closure. Clyde-built ships had dominated international trade a century earlier, now BAE Systems is the only other Clyde shipbuilder. Like many internationally, BAE no longer risk traditional dynamic slipway launches; they use a semi-submersible launch barge or heavy-lift vessel to launch the ships gently in deep water, others build ships in dry docks. This was to be the 363rd ship built at the site since Ferguson Brothers established the shipyard in 1903, and the heaviest. They had a week of the necessary high tide, which would not occur again until December.[28][29]
Responding to Inverclyde community interest, the public were invited to attend the launch, with access to the yard "on a first come, first served basis".[30][31] Crowds filled the allocated areas on 9 April 2024, while hundreds more watched from the adjacent Coronation Park (infilled from the original harbours), Newark Castle grounds and the park to its east (on the former site of Lamont's Castle Yard).[32][33]
Launch down slipway
Ferguson Marine interim CEO John Petticrew welcomed the launch as a significant milestone, Scottish Government cabinet secretary Màiri McAllan gave a short speech, local minister Rev. William Boyle blessed the vessel, then after a short delay due to gusting wind, the Glen Rosa was named and launched by Beth Atkinson, a qualified welder who had completed her apprenticeship at the yard the year prior. MSP Stuart McMillan played the bagpipes as the ship went. down the slipway.[34][35] Tugs then moved the vessel to the shipyard's Newark Quay, which had recently been vacated when Glen Sannox began its sea trials then was moved to the nearby Inchgreen Quay in Greenock.[32]
Service
Glen Rosa was originally ordered to serve on the "Uig Triangle" routes, linking Tarbert on Harris and Lochmaddy on North Uist with Uig on Skye. However in October 2022, CMAL ordered two new ferries for this route, named MV Claymore and MV Lochmor, leading to uncertainty about where Glen Rosa would be deployed.[36] In August 2023, CMAL confirmed that she would serve Arran, partnering Glen Sannox, with both dual-fuel vessels allocated to the Ardrossan to Brodick route.[7] The two new Arran ferries will initially operate between Troon and Brodick for the first two or three years of their careers, due to the planned upgrade works for Ardrossan harbour.[37]
