New 85m ro-pax catamaran ferry

BMT Specialised Ship Design has recently designed an 85m catamaran vehicle-passenger ferry built by Strategic Marine Vietnam for family-owned Scottish ferry operator Pentland Ferries. The vessel is the latest in a series of collaborations between Strategic Marine and BMT, which now includes a variety of ferries and an extensive portfolio of windfarm support vessels, with the partnership continuing to expand. The MV Alfred was named after the father of Andrew Banks, the owner and managing director of Pentland Ferries.

John Bonafoux, Business Development Director of Specialised Ship Design at BMT, said:

“I am pleased to announce the delivery of our new 85-meter catamaran Ro-Pax ferry that was ordered by Pentland Ferries and, I would like to welcome them to the large and growing family of BMT-designed vessels. This new design adds further depth to our diversified fleet portfolio where we are currently receiving strong interest from clients around the world due to the high efficiency of these purpose-built vessel design-solutions.”

Designed by Southampton-based BMT, construction began in mid-2017 at Strategic Marine’s Vung Tau facility in Vietnam. Launched in January 2019, with sea trials over the summer, the vessel has now completed the long voyage from Vietnam and arrived at her homeport in the Orkney Islands last week.

MV Alfred will operate in the rough waters of the Pentland Firth, between Gills Bay on the Scottish mainland and St Margaret’s Hope, Orkney, with a transit time of around one hour. Entry into service is planned for later this year. The vessel will significantly expand the operator’s capacity on the route, carrying up to 430 passengers and 98 cars, or 12 lorries with 54 vehicles.
Powered by four Yanmar 6EY17W engines and quad-screw propulsion, the low-emissions vessel is quiet and efficient, achieving a service speed of 16 knots. With a hull form specifically designed for the area of operation, the new boat ensures a comfortable transit for that onboard and maximum operability for the vessel’s owners.