Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL), which is wholly owned by the Scottish government, has awarded the contract to build two freight flex vessels to Guangzhou Shipyard International Co., Limited (GSI), following a 10-day standstill period.

The new 140m long freight flex ferries will replace the Helliar and Hildasay on the service operated by Serco NorthLink Ferries.

The two newbuilding’s will provide extra freight capacity and capability for quicker crossings on the routes and will also have the flexibility to allow space for up to 200 passengers to travel at peak periods.

Following an initial exercise to identify suitably qualified and experienced shipyards, four were invited to tender for the contract. Bids were robustly assessed against technical and financial criteria, with a 70%/30% weighting, respectively. The panel scoring the bids consisted of third-party specialists and CMAL experts. When scores across criteria were combined, GSI’s bid achieved the highest score and was identified as the winning yard.

“I welcome this important milestone being reached in the procurement to build and deliver two freight flex vessels to serve the Northern Isles network,” says Fiona Hyslop, Cabinet Secretary for Transport, who adds that “I appreciate all the work, particularly by CMAL and NorthLink, that has gone into getting us to this vital stage of the procurement process, and I am hopeful that we can look forward to contracts being signed at the end of the standstill period.”

“GSI’s bid demonstrated a commitment to innovation and efficiency, and we are confident they will deliver a reliable, robust pair of vessels to support the Northern Isles Ferry Service for years to come. This commitment is underpinned by strong workforce policies and internationally recognised environmental and safety management standards,” says Kevin Hobbs, Chief Executive of CMAL.