Arrow Vessel Reviews and Specifications

**Title: Balfour Beatty Leases 'Arrow' Ferry for Significant Scottish Infrastructure Project** In an exciting development for Scotland's energy landscape, the well-regarded infrastructure firm Balfour Beatty has successfully chartered the 'Arrow' for long-term use. This strategic move is aimed at bolstering logistics for the SSEN Transmission's ambitious Lewis Hub and the Western Isles High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) Link. This dedicated vessel will play a pivotal role in enhancing project execution while simultaneously ensuring the continuity of Caledonian MacBrayne's (CalMac's) critical Stornoway-Ullapool ferry service. The 'Arrow', previously on a 12-month charter with DFDS, is set to transition to its new role after the current agreement ends on March 24, 2026. The Lewis Hub represents a landmark energy initiative that will connect the Western Isles to the mainland transmission network for the first time, utilizing advanced subsea cable technology. As a crucial component of the Western Isles HVDC Connection Project, the hub will facilitate a robust high-voltage subsea and underground transmission link. One of the key features of the charter is a "release mechanism" that allows the 'Arrow' to be utilized by other companies during periods when it is not needed by SSEN Transmission. This flexibility will enhance the resilience of the island’s vital ferry network, ensuring operations remain smooth especially during dry-docking and routine maintenance of CalMac’s 'Loch Seaforth', which serves the Stornoway-Ullapool route. The successful charter of the 'Arrow' comes as a result of collaborative efforts among various stakeholders, including Stornoway Port, Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, and Ullapool Harbour Trust. Support from Transport Scotland, Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL), and CalMac has been instrumental in identifying innovative freight solutions that alleviate the pressure on existing ferry services, marking a significant step forward for Scotland’s island communities.

CalMac has sub-chartered the 'Arrow' from DFDS. The Isle of Man Steam Packet Company-owned vessel will be used to secure the necessary freight capacity onthe Stornoway–Ullapool route while the route’s regular ferry 'Loch Seaforth' undergoes a scheduled docking from Oct 19 to Nov 15, 2025. the passenger capacity on the Stornoway–Ullapool route during this period will be provided by the ferry 'Isle of Lewis'', which will be brought in from the Oban–Castlebay route. Inserting the 'Arrow' allows to keep freight and passenger services running smoothly while optimising fleet deployment across the network. It also provides some additional resilience ahead of the unpredictable winter season.

Due to a technical issue on board, the 'Arrow' was sidelined, and as of Aug 2, the ferry 'Loch Seaforth' was operating the overnight freight service until further notice. As a result of this, the departure from Stornoway on Aug 2 at 9 p.m. and from Ullapool on Aug 3 at 12.30 a.m. were cancelled. All booked customers on cancelled or affected sailings were accommodated on alternative sailings. Repairs were completed on Aug 3.

The 'Arrow' which was chartered to provide extra sailings on the Stornoway service had to be taken out of service after completing just five return sailings on July 24, 2021, due to a serious oil leak in the propulsion system following a fishing rope entanglement around a propeller. The ship left Stornoway on July 25 at 7.15 p.m. with an ETA at Belfast for drydocking on July 27. The damage was to be inspected and repaired, and the sailings were cancelled until further notice. The ferry 'Loch Seaforth' has returned to carry out the overnight freight service. Repairs were exptected to take about a week.

The crew of the 'Arrow' which ran aground while entering Aberdeen Harbour in thick fog on the morning of June 25, 2020, was not fully prepared for pilotage in restricted visibility, an investigation of the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) has found. An over-correction to get back on course was not noticed by the bridge team in time to avoid the grounding. Significant damage to the port side of the underwater hull was caused by the incident, which happened after an overnight passage from Lerwick. During its port approach, a pilot exemption certificate (PEC) holder provided by the vessel’s charterer was navigating by radar and steering the vessel. The vessel encountered the thick fog a few minutes before it entered Aberdeen’s 70-metre-wide navigation channel. The PEC holder became overloaded… with limited support from the bridge team. While attempting to correct a deviation to the north of the planned track, he over-corrected to the south – and that was not noticed by the bridge team in time to avoid the grounding. As a result of the actions taken following this investigation no recommendations have been taken.