FSG to build a new ferry for Scottish Caledonian Maritime Assets

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Category: Latest News

Published on Sunday, 24 June 2012 13:57

Written by Teijo Niemelä

Shipbuilders at FSG have taken their second order inside just a few weeks, booking the design and construction of a new type of RoPax ferry for Scottish shipowner Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited (CMAL). The new ferry will go into service in 2014 between Stornoway and Ullapool linking the mainland of northwestern Scotland with the Isle of Lewis in the Hebrides. Because of her high-value and modern design and construction, the ferry will be capable of round-the-clock operation and for this reason will replace two local ferries. She will be 116 metres long, accommodate 700 passengers and boast 372 lane metres for 143 cars or 26 trucks.

Once again FSG was able to beat off competition from many international yard rivals to bring this order back to Flensburg and there were some good reasons for this. FSG Managing Director Peter Sierk said "for the customer, serving this route with just one rather than two ships was the most economic solution. Doing so means, however, that the new ferry has to be capable of meeting very high demands on a daily basis."

Quite apart from quality, the ferry has to be as reliable as possible so that timetable delays and even breakdowns can be avoided. "It is extremely important to our client," said Peter Sierk, "that he can provide the best possible service to his own customers in turn, in other words his passengers. That’s why he chose us, because we can offer just the right kind of reliable ship operation." He said CMAL had decided that FSG had most to offer, including: - Delivery and deadline reliability - high economic efficiency - Excellent price-performance ratio - Top quality “built by Flensburger” - Low operational costs - Low emissions.

It is now a well-known fact on the global market that ships built by FSG not only consu- me up to 30 percent less fuel than conventional vessels but are also characterised by particularly low emission levels. Delivery of this latest newbuilding is planned for June 2014 and the owner will take the ferry into service immediately after that. Peter Sierk: "This order demonstrates once again that we can score points with indivi- dual and innovative solutions which are in the best interests of the customer. That’s our forte. We understand customer demands, come to grips with them and in the end come up with a concept which is just what the customer wants. You hardly ever find that happening anywhere else."

Because FSG is so good in the research and development sectors "we are able to convert this strength into a real competitive advantage."

Currently in the yard’s order book are two RoRo freight ferries for Ulusoy Sealines in Turkey, a RoRo freight ferry for U.N. Ro-Ro, also in Turkey, a ConRo ferry for a Canadian shipping company, two multi-functional project load vessels for Rolldock in the Netherlands, two offshore seismic ships for WesternGeco in England and, now, the RoPax ferry for CMAL in Scotland. Other promising projects remain under intensive study by our sales department. 

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