THE last civilian shipyard on the Clyde is to be nationalised by the Scottish Government within a month after a search for a commercial saviour failed.
Workers at Ferguson Marine in Port Glasgow, which was driven into insolvency by a calamitous contract for two CalMac ferries, were told of the development this morning.
The government has already written off almost £50m in loans and interest to the business.
The Scottish Tories called if “potentially disastrous” for Scotland’s shipbuilding industry.
The yard has been under temporary public control since going into administration in August.
At the time, Finance Secretary Derek Mackay said the Government would be prepared to take it into public ownership to safeguard its 350 jobs and complete the two ferries.
After inviting commercial bids for the business, administrators Deloitte concluded three indicative offers were “either not capable of being executed” or were a worse option for creditors than a sale to the Scottish Government.
Mr Mackay confirmed ministers had now begun legal discussion with Deloitte to “conclude the process of taking the Ferguson Marine shipyard into public ownership”.
The final terms of the are expected to be executed within the next four weeks.
Mr Mackay said said: “We have always been clear that we want to complete the vessels, secure jobs and give the yard a future.
“Administrators have concluded that despite other bids being submitted for the yard, the Scottish Government’s offer presents the best outcome for creditors.
“We are working with the administrators to bring the yard into public ownership.
“I will be there on Monday to meet with the excellent workforce and reiterate the Scottish Government’s commitment to achieving the best possible outcome for the yard and its employees.
“While there is still more to be done, our actions have ensured that there will be a future for Fergusons.”
Ferguson’s was bought of a previous administration in 2014 by tycoon Jim McColl’s Clyde Blower empire and quickly landed a £97m deal for two innovative dual-fuel CalMac ferries.
However the contract was beset by design changes, delays and spiralling costs.
Ferguson’s blamed Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL), the state-owned firm which ordered the vessels, and which in turn blamed Ferguson’s and insisted on a fixed price.
The Scottish Government loaned the yard £45m to get through cash flow problems, but refused to take a stake in the firm in return for absorbing half the £100m over-run.
With money problems mounting, Clyde Blowers put the business into administration and the Scottish Government took it under temporary control.
Tory MSP Jamie Greene said: “This is potentially disastrous news for Scotland’s shipbuilding industry. After minimal effort in trying to find a buyer it appears the SNP has thrown in the towel, leaving the future of our shipbuilding industry in question.
“The SNP has no idea how much public ownership will cost the taxpayer, no clue how public ownership affects its ability to bid for work, and has offered no guarantees that we will see new ferries any time soon.
“Any suggestion that the nationalists have saved the yard and jobs is complete nonsense. They are responsible for the mess the yard is in and they should have let it flourish in the private sector.
“We need a parliamentary inquiry to get to the bottom of this mess and to hold ministers to account for their failings over this fiasco.”
Stuart McMillan, the SNP MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde, welcomed the development.
He said: “This is fantastic news for the local area, the workforce and the communities that will benefit from these two new ferries.
“The past year, but particularly the last few months, have been fraught with uncertainty for the workforce and there were concerns over whether or not these ferries would be completed. However, in August the Scottish Government took the decisive step to secure the future of this yard, which stakeholders locally and nationally welcomed.
“This is a huge opportunity to seek further investment in the local area and for more vessels to be built at the yard.”
Chris McEleny, leader of the SNP opposition on Inverclyde Council, added: “We have known for sometime that this was a likely outcome. It is vital now that we look to the future to ensure that the renewal of an entire new fleet of CalMac Vessels happens at the yard.”
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