The keel for the third ferry in the B621/3 series, being built for Scottish operator Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited (CMAL), has been laid at Remontowa Shipbuilding S.A. in Gdańsk. The ceremony marks another milestone in the contract for a total of seven vessels destined for Scotland's island ferry network.

The vessels, ordered in 2025, will measure 49.9 metres in length and 12.48 metres in beam, with a depth to the main deck of 3.5 metres and a design draught of 2.1 metres. They will have a service speed of up to 9 knots.

The ferries will be operated by Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited (CMAL) and deployed on nine local routes serving the picturesque islands of the Scottish Hebrides. It should be recalled that the keel-laying ceremony for one vessel and the steel-cutting ceremony for two additional ships took place in March this year.

The vessels with yard numbers B621/2 and B621/3 will be capable of carrying up to 200 passengers and 24 cars per voyage. The B621/4, which features a different design from the remaining vessels in the series, will accommodate 250 passengers and 16 cars.

Each ferry will be equipped with four azimuth thrusters powered during normal operations by lithium-ion battery systems with a capacity of approximately 5.7 MWh, enabling all-day operation in fully electric mode. The battery capacity has been selected based on the vessels' energy requirements and their anticipated operational profiles, including route rotation schedules. The solution is expected to significantly reduce CO2 emissions and noise levels, improving passenger comfort while supporting the global decarbonisation of maritime transport and contributing to more sustainable shipping operations. This is particularly important given the environmentally sensitive areas in which the vessels will operate.

The ferries are being built to a technical design developed by the naval architecture firm LMG Marin, with detailed production documentation prepared with the support of Remontowa Marine Design & Consulting, part of the Remontowa Holding group. Delivery of the first vessel is scheduled for the third quarter of 2027, with subsequent ferries to be handed over at four-month intervals.

Photo: Remontowa Shipbuilding