David Tideman said Glen Sannox's delivery could be further delayed
The Scottish Government is facing calls for explanations over the sacking of the company responsible for building two Calmac ferries, which have been delayed and over budget.
Ferguson Marine announced Tuesday that it has terminated its contract with CEO David Tideman.
The reason for his resignation was not disclosed, but it is understood it was due to concerns about his performance.
The Scottish Conservatives have asked Economy Secretary Mairi Macallan to explain the decisions taken at Holyrood.
Graham Simpson, the party's shadow transport secretary, said Mr Tideman was “widely respected” and “seems to be delivering results”.
Mr Simpson has submitted an urgent question to the Scottish Parliament asking ministers to explain their decision.
The two ferries being built at the national shipyard, Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa, are running at almost four times their original cost of £97m. The delivery date will also be delayed by six years.
Mr Tideman previously ran a yacht building company and joined Port Glasgow Shipyard in 2022.
Mr McCarran said on Tuesday it was “unacceptable” to imply that further delays to Glen Sannox's delivery were “likely”. She said the ship was scheduled to be delivered in May.
Glen Rosa is expected to be delivered “at the latest” in September 2025.
Tiedemann has recently sought to highlight Glen Sannox's progress, praising its performance in sea trials earlier this year.
“It is unacceptable to fire someone who is widely respected in the industry without disclosing the nature of the problem.”
Scottish Labor also said the “sudden shake-up” of senior leadership “raises serious questions and the public deserves transparency about what happened.”
Mr. Tideman's contract was terminated by Ferguson Marine amid a number of changes in the company's senior management team.
Board chairman Andrew Miller said the shipyard needed “strong leadership to secure its long-term future”.
John McMunagle, co-convener of the GMB trade union, which represents shipyard workers, said he was “shocked and surprised” by Mr Tideman's resignation.
“David has inherited an almost impossible task,” Mr McNagle told the BBC. “Out of probably the six or seven CEOs we've had, David was the best.
“It's difficult. I think David was optimistic about setting a date that probably wasn't achievable, and he paid the price for it.”
Glen Sannox underwent sea trials in February ahead of scheduled delivery this year.
Mr McMunagle said employees nevertheless welcomed the appointment of non-executive director John Petticrew as interim CEO.
“John is clearly a shipyard guy,” he added. “He worked at the local Greenock shipyard before moving to Canada. We met with him yesterday and we fully support John and intend to give him our full support.” is.”
“With the Glen Rosa launching on April 9th and the Glen Sannox going into dry dock, we will have a severe shortage of work. We need to procure jobs.”
Former Ferguson Marine owner Jim McCall told the BBC that Tideman's sacking was “astonishing” and said he “never had a chance”.
Mr McCall rescued the Clyde River's last private shipyard from administration in 2014 and agreed its first contract to build two ferries for CMAL (the government agency that owns and procures Calmac's vessels) in 2015. .
He blamed an initial “fundamental flaw in the specifications” and subsequent failures on constant design changes.
“David Tideman is not the problem,” McCall said. “A great workforce is not the problem. CalMac is not the problem. The problem is the ferry design and his CMAL incompetence during this entire process.”
Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa vessel deliveries are plagued by delays
The two vessels, the first ships built by a British shipyard to run on liquefied natural gas (LNG), have been plagued by design challenges since they were ordered in 2015.
Errors and rework occurred as steel manufacturing outpaced detailed design work, leading to repeated delays and cost increases even after the Port Glasgow shipyard was taken back into administration and nationalized in 2019. .
Mr Miller told MSP in February that it would be difficult to bring the business back into the private sector without investing in a new automated plating line, and the company is seeking further funding from the Scottish Government.
The company plans to submit a new business proposal to the cabinet by the end of March.
In 2022, many Ferguson marine workers who participated in private meetings with MSP praised Tiedemann's leadership, comparing him favorably to the shipyard's previous management, saying he was a “reasonable speaker”. “I will do that,” he said.
