Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited (usually shortened to CMAL or CMAssets; Stòras Mara Cailleannach Earr in

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic (, ; Endonym and exonym, endonym: ), also known as Scots Gaelic or simply Gaelic, is a Celtic language native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a member of the Goidelic language, Goidelic branch of Celtic, Scottish Gaelic, alongs ...

) owns the

ferries A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus. ...

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manch ...

harbours A harbor (American English), or harbour (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be moored. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is ...

and infrastructure for the ferry services serving the west coast of Scotland, the

Firth of Clyde The Firth of Clyde, is the estuary of the River Clyde, on the west coast of Scotland. The Firth has some of the deepest coastal waters of the British Isles. The Firth is sheltered from the Atlantic Ocean by the Kintyre, Kintyre Peninsula. The ...

and the Northern Isles. CMAL is a wholly owned public corporation of the

Scottish Government The Scottish Government (, ) is the executive arm of the devolved government of Scotland. It was formed in 1999 as the Scottish Executive following the 1997 referendum on Scottish devolution, and is headquartered at St Andrew's House in ...

, with Scottish ministers as sole shareholders.

History

Until 1 October 2006

Caledonian MacBrayne Caledonian MacBrayne (), in short form CalMac, is the trade name of CalMac Ferries Ltd, the major operator of passenger and vehicle ferries to the west coast of Scotland, serving ports on the mainland and 22 of the major islands. It is a subsid ...

Ltd, which was wholly owned by the Scottish government, provided the majority of the Clyde and

Hebrides The Hebrides ( ; , ; ) are the largest archipelago in the United Kingdom, off the west coast of the Scotland, Scottish mainland. The islands fall into two main groups, based on their proximity to the mainland: the Inner Hebrides, Inner and Ou ...

ferry services and owned the associated vessels and a number of the ports and harbour facilities that the vessels used. These services required an annual revenue deficit grant from the then Scottish Executive to maintain lifeline service levels. To comply with European guidelines on State Aids in Maritime Transport, an open public tender was deemed necessary in respect of these ferry services and the Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Services (CHFS) was tendered as a single bundle, with the exception of the Gourock-Dunoon service. In recognition of the uniqueness of the fleet and to ensure a level playing field for all bidders, on 1 October 2006 Caledonian MacBrayne Ltd was split into: * An asset-owning company, Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL) * A new operating company, CalMac Ferries Ltd (CFL). This was done by Caledonian MacBrayne Ltd transferring its operations—but not its assets—to CFL. The operation of the lifeline ferry service was then put out to open competitive tender. CMAL now owns all vessels, the majority of land-based assets (ports, harbours, etc.) and the Caledonian MacBrayne brand, and makes them available to an operator through an open tendering process. CFL continues to operate the services after winning the tendering process and holds the Public Services Contract (PSC) until 30 September 2013. Under the terms of the tender, CFL is bound to use the vessels of CMAL.

Business

CMAL's responsibilities include: * Maintaining, improving and enhancing assets such as vessels and the land and property around piers and harbours * Seeking extra investment to invest in ferries and harbour facilities * Working with stakeholders within Scotland and the wider maritime community to be acknowledged as the principal provider of the most cost-effective, innovative ferries and port infrastructure to the benefit of local communities

Ferries

CMAL currently owns 37 ferries, of which 32 are operated by CalMac Ferries on routes to the islands and peninsulas of the west of Scotland. In April 2018 it was agreed that the five vessels operated by

NorthLink Ferries NorthLink Ferries (also referred to as Serco NorthLink Ferries) is an operator of passenger and vehicle ferries, as well as ferry services, between mainland Scotland and the Northern Isles of Orkney and Shetland. Since July 2012, it has been ope ...

on routes to the

Orkney Orkney (), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago off the north coast of mainland Scotland. The plural name the Orkneys is also sometimes used, but locals now consider it outdated. Part of the Northern Isles along with Shetland, ...

and

Shetland Shetland (until 1975 spelled Zetland), also called the Shetland Islands, is an archipelago in Scotland lying between Orkney, the Faroe Islands, and Norway, marking the northernmost region of the United Kingdom. The islands lie about to the ...

islands would also join the fleet. Many ferries are specially built for the ports they serve yet are still interchangeable and able to serve different crossings and can carry from one to 143 cars. The total fleet value was estimated at £130m in 2017. The newest vessel in the fleet, , was handed over to CalMac on 21 November 2024, and entered service on the Troon-Brodick route on 12 January 2025.

Clyde and Hebrides Islands ferries (Caledonian MacBrayne)

Northern Isles ferries (NorthLink Ferries)

Former vessels

and ceased operation with Caledonian MacBrayne in early 2018, and are now no longer part of the fleet. was withdrawn from service in November 2024, and spare parts which could be used for maintaining other vessels are currently being removed for storage. She will later be taken to a

shipbreaker Ship breaking (also known as ship recycling, ship demolition, ship scrapping, ship dismantling, or ship cracking) is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships either as a source of parts, which can be sold for re-use, or for t ...

s for final disposal.

Harbours

CMAL is Harbour Authority at 24 locations across Scotland and owns the associated port infrastructure and properties at each of these locations. Additionally, CMAL owns and leases a number of properties at various locations associated with the delivery of Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Services. As Statutory Harbour Authority for a number of these harbours, CMAL's responsibilities and duties include: * A duty of care to all port users * An obligation to conserve and promote the safe use of the harbours * Responsibility for efficiency, economy and safety of operation, in respect of the services and facilities provided.

Completed projects

Hybrid ferries project

On 17 December 2012, the world's first seagoing

roll-on/roll-off Roll-on/roll-off (RORO or ro-ro) ships are cargo ships designed to carry wheeled cargo, such as cars, motorcycles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, buses, Trailer (vehicle), trailers, and railroad cars, that are driven on and off the ship on their ...

vehicle and passenger diesel–electric hybrid ferry was launched by CMAL on the Clyde. incorporates a low-carbon hybrid system of diesel electric and

lithium-ion battery A lithium-ion or Li-ion battery is a type of rechargeable battery that uses the reversible intercalation of Li+ ions into electronically conducting solids to store energy. Li-ion batteries are characterized by higher specific energy, energ ...

power. The 135-tonne ferry is nearly 150 feet long and can accommodate 150 passengers, 23 cars or two heavy-goods vehicles. She began service between

Sconser Sconser () is a small croft (land), crofting township on the island of Skye, in Scotland, situated on the south shore of Loch Sligachan. The main A87 road, A87 road of Skye passes through Sconser and the ferry to Raasay departs from the pier. Le ...

Skye The Isle of Skye, or simply Skye, is the largest and northernmost of the major islands in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The island's peninsulas radiate from a mountainous hub dominated by the Cuillin, the rocky slopes of which provide some o ...

and

Raasay Raasay (; ), sometimes the Isle of Raasay, is an island between the Isle of Skye and the mainland of Scotland. It is separated from Skye by the Sound of Raasay and from Applecross by the Inner Sound, Scotland, Inner Sound. It is famous fo ...

in the summer of 2013. A second hybrid ferry, , was launched in May 2013 and initially operated on the Tarbert (Loch Fyne) -

Portavadie Portavadie () is a village on the shores of Loch Fyne on the coast of the Cowal Peninsula, in Argyll and Bute, West of Scotland. The Portavadie complex was built in 1975 by the then Scottish Office for the purpose of constructing concrete pl ...

route, currently operating on the

Lochaline Lochaline () is the main village in the Morvern area of Highland, Scotland. The coastal village is situated at the mouth of Loch Aline, on the northern shore of Sound of Mull, the Sound of Mull. A ferry operates regularly over to Fishnish on the ...

Fishnish Fishnish () is a ferry terminal on the Isle of Mull, roughly halfway between Tobermory and Craignure. It is owned and operated by Caledonian MacBrayne Caledonian MacBrayne (), in short form CalMac, is the trade name of CalMac Ferries Ltd, t ...

route. A third, to be named , was launched in spring 2016 and operates on the

Claonaig Claonaig (, ) is a hamlet on the east coast of the Kintyre peninsula in western Scotland, linked to Lochranza on the Isle of Arran by the CalMac ferry in the summer months. Claonaig is a hamlet south of Skipness, and is the location of the ...

Lochranza Lochranza () is a village located on the Isle of Arran in the Firth of Clyde, Scotland. The population, somewhat in decline, is around 200 people. Geography Lochranza is the northernmost of Arran's villages and is located in the northwestern c ...

route, additionally to Tarbert (Loch Fyne) and

in the winter.

Brodick terminal redevelopment

CMAL completed the redevelopment of Brodick ferry terminal. The redevelopment included an entirely new pier with linkspan and airbridge, a second berth with concrete ramp, a new two-storey terminal building with bus station and car marshalling space. The old linkspan was removed and the causeway transformed into an outdoor seating area.

Sustainable ferries study

CMAL was commissioned to carry out a feasibility study for

Scottish Enterprise Scottish Enterprise () is a non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government which encourages economic development, Business, enterprise, innovation, international and investment agency, investment in business. The body covers the eastern ...

to evaluate the technical and commercial possibilities of using hydrogen

fuel cell A fuel cell is an electrochemical cell that converts the chemical energy of a fuel (often hydrogen fuel, hydrogen) and an oxidizing agent (often oxygen) into electricity through a pair of redox reactions. Fuel cells are different from most bat ...

s to enable the development of zero-emission ferries. Along with

Orkney Islands Council The Orkney Islands Council, is the local authority for the Orkney Islands, one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It was established in 1975 by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 and was largely unaffected by the Scottish local governme ...

Ballard Power Systems Ballard Power Systems Inc. is a developer and manufacturer of proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell products for markets such as heavy-duty motive (consisting of bus and tram applications), portable power, material handling as well as enginee ...

Kongsberg Maritime Kongsberg Maritime (KM) is a Norwegian technology enterprise within the Kongsberg Gruppen (KOG). Kongsberg Maritime deliver systems for positioning, surveying, navigation, and automation to merchant vessels and offshore installations. Their most ...

and others, CMAL are part of the HySeas III consortium hoping to demonstrate that fuel cells can be integrated with a marine hybrid electric drive system. The project hopes to develop a vessel to operate between

Kirkwall Kirkwall (, , or ; ) is the largest town in Orkney, an archipelago to the north of mainland Scotland. First mentioned in the ''Orkneyinga saga'', it is today the location of the headquarters of the Orkney Islands Council and a transport hub wi ...

and

Shapinsay Shapinsay (, ) is one of the Orkney Islands off the north coast of mainland Scotland. With an area of , it is the eighth largest island in the Orkney archipelago. It is low-lying and, with a bedrock formed from Old Red Sandstone overlain by bo ...

. The project was completed in June 2022.

Current projects

Dual-fuel ferries

In September 2015, it was announced that CMAL would order two ferries from

Ferguson Marine Engineering Ferguson Marine (Port Glasgow) Limited is a shipbuilding company whose yard, located in Port Glasgow on the Firth of Clyde in Scotland, was established in 1903. It is the last remaining shipbuilder on the lower Clyde and is currently the only ...

(FMEL). The vessels will be able to operate on

liquefied natural gas Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is natural gas (predominantly methane, CH4, with some mixture of ethane, C2H6) that has been cooled to liquid form for ease and safety of non-pressurized storage or transport. It takes up about 1/600th the volume o ...

(LNG) and marine diesel, future-proofing them for tighter sulphur emissions regulations. They will be the largest commercial vessels to be built on the Clyde since 2001. The first, named , was due to enter service at Ardrossan in 2018, with the second, named , following a few months later. Both vessels have been delayed, with the shipyard going into administration in August 2019. The ' ferry fiasco' is an ongoing political scandal in Scotland, exposing management failures across all parties involved. was handed over to CalMac on 21 November 2024, and entered revenue-earning service on the Troon to Brodick route on 12 January 2025. As of 13 May 2025, the expected delivery date for is between April and June 2026, after numerous delays.

LNG facilities

Uig Uig is a placename meaning "bay" (from Norse) and may refer to: Places * Uig, Coll, a hamlet on the island of Coll, Argyll and Bute, Scotland * Uig, Duirinish, a hamlet near Totaig, on the Isle of Skye, Highland Scotland * Uig, Lewis, a civil par ...

and

Ardrossan Ardrossan (; ) is a town on the North Ayrshire coast in southwestern Scotland. The town has a population of 10,670 and forms part of a conurbation with Saltcoats and Stevenston known as the 'Three Towns#Scotland, Three Towns'. Ardrossan is loca ...

for the dual-fuel vessels under construction.{{cite web, url=https://www.cmassets.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/CMAL-CorporatePlanFinal_2021_WEB_Spreads.pdf, title=Corporate Plan 2021-2024, publisher=CMAL, date=, accessdate=22 June 2021

Small vessel replacement programme

This project is to replace the oldest of the Loch class, in two phases over ten years. The new vessels would be more environmentally friendly and meet higher regulatory standards. The first phase will be for the building of seven new vessels for the following routes. #

Colintraive Colintraive () is a village in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. Once the site where cattle were swum across the narrows to the Isle of Bute, the MV ''Loch Dunvegan'' — a ferry operated by Caledonian MacBrayne — now provides a link to the islan ...

–

Rhubodach Rhubodach is a small settlement on the north-eastern shore of the Isle of Bute, Argyll and Bute, Scotland. The name ''rhubodach'' may come from the Gaelic r''ubha a' bhodaich'' which translates as ''old man's point'' or ''promontory'' or alte ...

, replacing {{MV, Loch Dunvegan #

–

, replacing {{MV, Hallaig (to be cascaded, probably to

Cumbrae Great Cumbrae () is the larger of the two islands known as The Cumbraes in the lower Firth of Clyde in western Scotland. The island is sometimes called Millport, after its main town. Home to the Cathedral of The Isles and the FSC Millport fi ...

, to replace {{MV, Loch Riddon as second summer vessel, with a possibility for a higher passenger capacity) #

Iona Iona (; , sometimes simply ''Ì'') is an island in the Inner Hebrides, off the Ross of Mull on the western coast of Scotland. It is mainly known for Iona Abbey, though there are other buildings on the island. Iona Abbey was a centre of Gaeli ...

–

Fionnphort Fionnphort (, ) is the principal port of the Ross of Mull, and the second largest settlement in the area (its population is approximately 80). The village's name is the anglicised pronunciation of the Gaelic for "White Port" and previous names h ...

, replacing {{MV, Loch Buie # Tarbert (Loch Fyne) -

, replacing {{MV, Isle of Cumbrae #

–

, replacing {{MV, Lochinvar (to be cascaded elsewhere in the network) # Tobermory –

Kilchoan Kilchoan () is a village on the Scotland, Scottish peninsula of Ardnamurchan, beside the Sound of Mull in Lochaber, Highland (council area), Highland. It is the most westerly village in mainland Great Britain, Britain, although several tiny ha ...

, replacing {{MV, Loch Tarbert #

Tayinloan Tayinloan (, ) is a village situated on the west coast of the Kintyre peninsula in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. The village has a sub post office, general store and a small hotel (all currently closed), a village hall and a play park. There is a ...

–

Gigha Gigha ( ; ; ) or the Isle of Gigha (and formerly Gigha Island) is an island off the west coast of Kintyre in Scotland. The island forms part of Argyll and Bute and has a population of 163 people. The climate is mild with higher than average suns ...

, replacing {{MV, Loch Ranza The procurement process began in July 2024, and in March 2025 a contract for the seven vessels was awarded to Remontowa Shipbuilding of

Gdańsk Gdańsk is a city on the Baltic Sea, Baltic coast of northern Poland, and the capital of the Pomeranian Voivodeship. With a population of 486,492, Data for territorial unit 2261000. it is Poland's sixth-largest city and principal seaport. Gdań ...

in Poland, with the first vessel expected to be delivered by 2027. The second phase of the small vessel replacement programme, covering ferries that undertake longer journeys or have port or sea constraints, began initial design and port feasibility studies in August 2024. The following routes are in scope for this phase: #

Barra Barra (; or ; ) is an island in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland, and the second southernmost inhabited island there, after the adjacent island of Vatersay to which it is connected by the Vatersay Causeway. In 2011, the population was 1,174. ...

–

Eriskay Eriskay (), from the Old Norse for "Eric's Isle", is an island and community council area of the Outer Hebrides in northern Scotland with a population of 143, as of the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 census. It lies between South Uist and Bar ...

, replacing {{MV, Loch Alainn # Berneray – Leverburgh, replacing {{MV, Loch Portain #

Mallaig Mallaig (; ) is a seaport, port in Morar, on the west coast of the Scottish Highlands, Highlands of Scotland. It faces Skye from across the Sound of Sleat. The Mallaig railway station, local railway station is the terminus of the West Highlan ...

– Armadale, replacing {{MV, Loch Fyne

New Islay ferries

This project is to replace {{MV, Hebridean Isles and {{MV, Finlaggan (to be cascaded elsewhere in the network).{{Cite web , title=New vessels for Islay , url=https://www.cmassets.co.uk/project/islay/ , access-date=2023-05-13 , website=CMAL Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd , language=en On 3 October 2022 the first steel was cut for the first vessel, named MV ''Isle of Islay'''','' at

Cemre Shipyard Cemre Shipyard () is a shipyard in Altınova, on the shore of the Sea of Marmara in Yalova Province, Turkey. Established in 2005, they now specialise in low- and zero-emission, battery and hybrid vessels for the world market. History Cemre signe ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. On the week of 13 January 2023 the first vessels' keel was laid and the second vessels' first steel was cut. Voting for the names of the two vessels was launched on 24 April 2023, where the public was asked to pick two names, with the following options: *

Isle of Islay Islay ( ; , ) is the southernmost island of the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. Known as "The Queen of the Hebrides", it lies in Argyll and Bute just south west of Jura and around north of the Northern Irish coast. The island's capital is Bowmor ...

—the southernmost island of the

Inner Hebrides The Inner Hebrides ( ; ) is an archipelago off the west coast of mainland Scotland, to the south east of the Outer Hebrides. Together these two island chains form the Hebrides, which experience a mild oceanic climate. The Inner Hebrides compri ...

of Scotland. *

Pioneer Pioneer commonly refers to a person who is among the first at something that is new to a community. A pioneer as a settler is among the first settling at a place that is new to the settler community. A historic example are American pioneers, perso ...

—a ferry built in 1974 serving

West Loch Tarbert West Loch Tarbert () is a sea loch that separates the northern and southern parts of Harris in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. A small isthmus joins these two areas, on which is to be found the village of Tarbert. The loch contains the islands ...

and

Port Ellen Port Ellen () is a small town on the island of Islay, in Argyll, Scotland. The town is named after the wife of its founder, Walter Frederick Campbell. Its previous name, ''Leòdamas'', is derived from Old Norse meaning "Leòd's Harbour". Port E ...

on Islay. She was the longest vessel to operate this far up the loch. *

Loch Gruinart Loch Gruinart ( from the Old Norse, meaning "shallow fjord") is a sea loch on the northern coast of isle of Islay in Scotland. Land at the head of the loch, Gruinart Flats, is a designated nature reserve owned by the RSPB. It is an important wi ...

—a sea loch on the north coast of Islay. *

Loch Indaal Loch Indaal (or Lochindaal) is a sea loch on Islay, the southernmost island of the Hebrides, off the west coast of Scotland. Together with Loch Gruinart to the north, it was formed by the Loch Gruinart Fault, which branches off the Great Gle ...

—a sea loch south of Loch Gruinart, and inspiration for the folk song “The Lights of Lochindaal” by Iain Simpson. * Laggan Bay—home to ‘The Big Strand’, a five-mile-long beach, located on the southeast entrance to

. * Machir Bay—a small bay on the west coast of Islay. The names {{MV, Isle of Islay and {{MV, Loch Indaal were selected. On 24 May 2023 the keel for ''Loch Indaal'' was laid; she was subsequently launched on 8 June 2024.{{cite web, url=https://news.stv.tv/highlands-islands/calmac-ferry-mv-loch-indaal-launched-at-turkish-shipyard-ahead-of-delivery-in-scotland?utm_source=app, title=Calmac ferry launched at Turkish shipyard ahead of delivery in Scotland, date=8 June 2024, access-date=10 June 2024, publisher=STV NewsThe vessels utilise Voith Schneider Propulsion and bow thrusters. ''Isle of Islay'' was expected to be delivered during the first quarter of 2025, with ''Loch Indaal'' expected to be delivered in the second quarter of the year.{{cite web, url=https://www.parliament.scot/-/media/files/committees/net-zero-energy-and-transport-committee/correspondence/2024/cmal_update-on-new-vessels-for-islay-and-little-minch-30-september-2024.pdf, title=Update on New Vessels for Islay & Little Minch, publisher=Scottish Parliament, author=Kevin Hobbs (CMAL), date=30 September 2024, access-date=2 October 2024 In February 2025 a delay to delivery was announced, with the shipyard blaming the impact of the

war in Ukraine The Russo-Ukrainian War began in February 2014 and is ongoing. Following Ukraine's Revolution of Dignity, Russia Russian occupation of Crimea, occupied and Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, annexed Crimea from Ukraine. It then ...

on steel supplies, Houthi attacks on vessels in the Red Sea, the

2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes On 6 February 2023, at 04:17 Time in Turkey, TRT (01:17 Coordinated Universal Time, UTC), a 7.8 earthquake struck southern and central Turkey and northern and western Ba'athist Syria, Syria. The epicenter was west–northwest ...

, a shortage of commissioning engineers, and snow and cold weather in Turkey. The expected handover date for ''Isle of Islay'' was stated to be no earlier than July 2025, with ''Loch Indaal'' following in winter 2025.{{cite web, url=https://www.hebrides-news.com/further-delays-calmac-ferries-from-turkey-28225.html, title=Further delays revealed for four new CalMac ferries being built in Turkey, publisher=Hebrides News, date=28 February 2025, access-date=2 March 2025 Due to the size of the vessels, infrastructure upgrades including dredging, new quay walls, strengthening works, fendering upgrades, facilities for shore power were required at Kennacraig, Port Askaig and Colonsay. These works were completed in March 2025.

New Little Minch ferries

This project is to replace {{MV, Hebrides (to be cascaded elsewhere in the network) and split the routes in the summer, having one vessel going to Lochmaddy and the other to Tarbert, giving more resilience to the fleet and the

Outer Hebrides The Outer Hebrides ( ) or Western Isles ( , or ), sometimes known as the Long Isle or Long Island (), is an Archipelago, island chain off the west coast of mainland Scotland. It is the longest archipelago in the British Isles. The islan ...

. The two vessels,will be of the same design as {{MV, Isle of Islay and {{MV, Loch Indaal. All four of these vessels will be built at the Cemre Shipyard in

. CMAL confirmed on 19 May 2023 that the first steel for the first vessel would be cut on 24 May 2023. On 20 September 2023, the keel was laid for the first vessel, while the first steel was cut for the second vessel. A public vote to select the names for the two vessels began on 30 November 2023, with voting closing at midnight on Monday 18th December. The names {{MV, Claymore, 2024, 6 and {{MV, Lochmor, 2024, 6 were selected. As with the new Islay vessels, it was announced in February 2025 that delivery, originally planned for 2025, would be delayed until 2026.

Northern Isles Freight Vessels

This project will replace two NorthLink freight vessels currently operating on the Aberdeen to Kirkwall/Lerwick route. Although primarily designated as freight vessels, there is potential for the inclusion of flexible passenger-carrying capacity. As of March 2025 this project is at the concept design stage, with delivery of these vessels not expected before 2028. On 4 June 2025, funding was awarded by the Scottish Government for the replacement of these vessels and as a result the procurement process got under way. The contract is expected to be awarded in February 2026.

Gourock ferries and terminal redevelopment

Replacements for the three passenger-only fleet serving Dunoon and Kilcreggan. This project also includes the redevelopment of all three terminals and related infrastructure. This project is currently at the design phase, with construction due to begin in 2025/26.{{Cite web, publisher=CMAL, date=May 2023, title=CMAL Corporate Plan 2024 - 2027 , url=https://www.cmassets.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/CMAL-CorporatePlan_2023-2026_Final_rev.pdf , access-date=21 August 2024 , website=www.cmassets.co.uk

New Lochboisdale ferry and Gasay Ferry Terminal

A new vessel will be constructed to replace {{MV, Lord of the Isles on the

Lochboisdale Lochboisdale ( ) is the main village and port on the island of South Uist, Outer Hebrides, Scotland. Lochboisdale is within the parish of South Uist, and is situated on the shore of Loch Baghasdail at the southern end of the A865. History The ...

(

South Uist South Uist (, ; ) is the second-largest island of the Outer Hebrides in Scotland. At the 2011 census, it had a usually resident population of 1,754: a decrease of 64 since 2001. The island, in common with the rest of the Hebrides, is one of the ...

) service. This also includes a new terminal at Gasay, near Lochboisdale, as the current pier is getting to the end of its life. This project is currently at the design phase, and as of February 2025 a date for procurement was still to be confirmed.

Future Mull ferries

The CMAL Corporate Plan for 2024-2027 envisages the start of the design phase for two new major units to replace {{MV, Isle of Mull and {{MV, Loch Frisa on the

Oban Oban ( ; meaning ''The Little Bay'') is a resort town within the Argyll and Bute council area of Scotland. Despite its small size, it is the largest town between Helensburgh and Fort William, Highland, Fort William. During the tourist seaso ...

Craignure Craignure (; ) is a village and the main ferry port on the Isle of Mull, Argyll and Bute, Scotland. The village is within the parish of Torosay. Geography The village is located around Craignure Bay, on Mull's east coast. It has a population of ...

service. As of June 2025 this project had yet to publicly commence, however it was mentioned in the scope of their latest project for works at Oban berth 1.{{Cite web , title=Oban 1 Berth Upgrades , url=https://www.cmassets.co.uk/projects/oban-1-berth-upgrades/ , access-date=2025-06-04 , website=CMAL Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd , language=en-US

Criticism and Future

CMAL has come under significant criticism for its handling of procurement, particularly in relation to the building programme of MV ''Glen Sannox'' and MV ''Glen Rosa'', both under construction at Ferguson Shipyard in Port Glasgow. The function and future of CMAL is currently under consideration by the

via Project Neptune which is considering the management and delivery of Scottish ferry services. The future of CMAL is subject to a number of proposals being made including re-merging CMAL and

as was the case previously or indeed CMAL being absorbed into the function of

Transport Scotland Transport Scotland () is the national transport agency of Scotland. It was established by the Transport (Scotland) Act 2005, and began operating on 1 January 2006 as an executive agency of the Scottish Government. Transport Scotland, an execut ...

. A Scottish Parliament committee was critical of CMAL and ultimately has considered the proposals outlined in Project Neptune, recommending CMAL be abolished and a new public division of

established called Ferries Scotland. There have been numerous calls such as that from Kenny MacLeod, Chairman of Harris Development Trust, to scrap CMAL and reintegrate the organisation as an internal organ of Caledonian MacBrayne. These comments were also echoed in the media by the RMT Union. {{cn, date=July 2023

Footnotes

{{Reflist

References

* Clyde Pleasure Steamers – Ian McCrorie, Orr, Pollock & Co. Ltd., Greenock, {{ISBN, 1-869850-00-9 * Steamers of the Highlands and Islands – Ian McCrorie, Orr, Pollock & Co. Ltd., Greenock, {{ISBN, 1-869850-01-7 * To the Coast: One Hundred Years of the Caledonian Steam Packet Co. – Ian McCrorie, Fairlie Press, Fairlie 1989, {{ISBN, 1-871209-01-3 * The Kingdom of MacBrayne – Nick S. Robins and Donald E. Meek, Birlinn Ltd, Edinburgh 2006, {{ISBN, 1-84158-500-9 * Days At The Coast – Robert Preston, Stenlake Publishing, Ochiltree 1994, {{ISBN, 1-872074-42-1 * {{cite web , url=https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/news/highlands-islands/5582938/cmal-disbanded-ferry/, title=Islander business group writes letter demanding Cmal is 'disbanded immediately' following ferry procurement failures , access-date=2023-07-27 * {{cite web , url=https://digitalpublications.parliament.scot/Committees/Report/NZET/2023/6/26/d7d24afd-4bca-47ac-8bdd-f745434ecde2 , title=A Modern and Sustainable Ferry Service for Scotland, date=2005-04-30 , website=The Scottish Parliament , access-date=2023-07-27

External links

Official Homepage

Caledonian MacBrayne Official Homepage
{{Public bodies of the Scottish Government Public corporations of the Scottish Government Highlands and Islands of Scotland Companies based in Inverclyde 2006 establishments in Scotland Transport companies established in 2006 Water transport in Scotland