Cammell Laird completes £2.7m ferry conversion project
BIRKENHEAD shipyard and engineering firm Cammell Laird has completed a £2.7m contract to update and lengthen the MV Hoy Head car ferry for Orkney Islands Council.
The work on the MV Hoy Head has increased the car capacity on the vessel from 14 to 24 cars or for up to three 16.5 metre HGVs and seven cars. This means the vessel now has the highest load capacity in the Orkney Ferries fleet, adding considerable extra capacity for the Orkney Islands of Hoy and Flotta, the communities served by the Hoy Head.
As well as increasing capacity, the project upgraded the propulsion and control systems and improved the manoeuvrability and carbon footprint of the vessel. The passenger accommodation was also upgraded.
Cammell Laird managing director Linton Roberts said: “We are ideally placed to win more work in this sector given our expertise, track record and ability to deliver on time and to cost effective budgets. This contract further continues our long association of providing vital support to island communities around the UK.”
Councillor James Stockan, chair of the Council’s Development and Infrastructure Committee, said: “It will help alleviate congestion and provide better opportunities for residents and visitors to travel at the times most convenient to them. This project will provide a social and economic boost for the South Isles.”
The contract completion marks a busy period for Cammell Laird in the ferry market. The company is also well underway with a multi million pound contract to build two new vehicle and passenger vessels for Scottish based ferry operator Western Ferries.
