Shipbuilding Credit Guarantee Scheme to boost UK's shipbuilding industry and employment on the Isle of Wight

2 August 2023

The UK shipbuilding industry is set to receive a significant boost as the government launches the Shipbuilding Credit Guarantee Scheme (SCGS) - a key component of the £4 billion National Shipbuilding Strategy Refresh plan. The scheme is expected to create hundreds of jobs and contribute hundreds of millions to the UK economy, providing a positive impact to maritime firms like Diverse Marine on the Isle of Wight.

 

Diverse Marine, the largest and busiest shipbuilder on the Isle of Wight, boasts a diverse range of current builds, including offshore wind crew transfer vessels, autonomous workboats, passenger vessels, and search & rescue craft, in addition to carrying out planned and unplanned maintenance on lifeboats for the RNLI. As a cornerstone of shipbuilding on the island, Diverse Marine plays a vital role in sustaining high-skilled careers and supporting the local supply chain.

 

Industry Minister Nusrat Ghani emphasized the importance of shipbuilding as an integral part of the UK's industrial identity, stating, "With cutting-edge vessels designed and built here in the UK, this will be a boost to high-skilled careers and every company involved in the supply chain for shipbuilding, helping us to grow the economy."

 

The SCGS's impact is expected to be significant, with government estimates suggesting the creation of hundreds of new jobs and a substantial financial contribution to the economy. By sharing the risk with lenders, the scheme will encourage finance offers to UK vessel owners and operators, providing the much-needed capital for ship purchases, refits, retrofits, and repairs.

 

Ben Wallace, the Shipbuilding Tsar and Defence Secretary, emphasized the importance of building confidence in UK shipyards and investing in technology to drive productivity forward in this vital sector. Shipbuilding contributes £2.4 billion to the UK economy annually and supports 42,600 jobs across the nation, making it a crucial part of the country's export ambitions, with 95 percent of UK trade moved by sea.


 

Maritime UK CEO Chris Shirling-Rooke MBE applauded the government's launch of the SCGS, stating, "The SCGS is a massive vote of confidence from the government, and it will empower the UK’s shipbuilding enterprise to compete fairly on the global stage in doing what it does best: building Great British ships." This investment in shipbuilding aligns with the UK's new green economy, encouraging continued investment in innovative, sustainable, and low-carbon maritime technologies.

 

The Shipbuilding Credit Guarantee Scheme comes at a crucial time for coastal communities, as it will revitalize the UK's shipbuilding sector and support a vast supply chain, sustaining skilled jobs across the country. The wider maritime sector, which already employs 113,000 people nationwide and contributes £11 billion to the economy, will further benefit from this initiative.

 

Ben Colman, Diverse Marine: “Diverse Marine and other shipbuilders on the Isle of Wight eagerly anticipate the positive impact of the SCGS, hoping to secure more orders, create more jobs, and play a pivotal role in the resurgence of the UK shipbuilding industry.”

Diverse Marine’s Finance & Lease Programme Delivers Two CTVs, with Five More in Build

27 February 2025
Cowes, UK (27-02-25) Since launching its Finance & Lease Programme in November 2023, Diverse Marine has successfully delivered two crew transfer vessels (CTVs), with three more currently in build for delivery this year and two further shortly thereafter of the first batch.The programme continues to operate as a rolling initiative, providing new-build CTVs based on customer demand. The first vessel completed under the programme was NR Alpha, which was unveiled at Seawork last year. This Storm Class CTV has set new benchmarks for fuel efficiency and performance, leading NR Marine Services to order a third vessel—NR Rival, the first of the new Typhoon Class CTVs. NR Rival was delivered in January 2025. TheTyphoon Class features a hull form designed for exceptional head-sea performance and tower access while maintaining high buoyancy reserves for superior seakeeping in following and stern-quarter seas. It also comes with Zero Emissions (Power Management) class notation, recognising its efficiency in reducing fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. Stock Build 3, a first Brevity Class CTV is undergoing sea trials with the vessel available for quick delivery following rebrand to suit a prospective clients requirements. Stock Build 4, to be named NR Rebellion, a second Typhoon Class CTV, is now in its final build phase, with the wheelhouse and saloon fitted earlier this month. Again ordered by NR Marine Services, she is scheduled for launch and sea trials in March. Owen Nutt, Director at NR Marine Services, commented: “Receiving three world-class CTVs in the last 10 months has been transformative for our business. Each vessel has outperformed expectations in speed and efficiency, delivering significant fuel cost savings for our clients.This success has given us the confidence to order another Typhoon Class CTV and another Storm Class CTV through Diverse Marine’s Finance & Lease Programme, and we look forward to putting them to work soon.” Meanwhile, Stock Build 5, to be named NR Hunter, a third Storm Class CTV, is currently under construction at Diverse Marine’s facility in Cowes and will be launched at Seawork in June. Stock Build 6, an Ambitious Class CTV is also currently under construction and will be delivered to OEG, whilst Stock Build 7, a further Brevity Class CTV, will follow in Q3/Q4 of this year. Ben Colman, Director at Diverse Marine, added: “The success of our Finance & Lease Programme is proving that high-quality, next-generation CTVs can be more accessible and affordable for operators. By reducing the financial barriers to vessel ownership, we’re enabling companies to upgrade their fleets with more efficient and capable vessels. With four more vessels in build and strong interest in future slots, we look forward to continuing to support the offshore wind industry with innovative financing and cutting-edge designs.” For more information on the Diverse Marine Finance & Lease Programme, including availability and build slots, please contact Ben Colman or Peter Curtis on 01983 300656.

Diverse Marine Start Construction of CSOV Daughter Craft

12 June 2024
Seawork, Southampton, UK (12-06-24) Diverse Marine is proud to announce that it has been selected by VARD GROUP AS to construct a Chartwell Daugher Craft to be installed on a VARD 4 19 CSOV under construction for PURUS Wind. The 12m catamaran daughter craft,designed by Chartwell Marine in Southampton features a twin IMOTier-3Volvo Penta IPS propulsion system to reduce emissions and provide good performance when deployed from the CSOV.  Ben Colman, Director of Diverse Marine:“I am very proud of this contract award, something different for our small boats team off the back of small military craft, amphibious CTV, survey vessels and a fast passenger vessel. If there is sufficient demand for daughter craft of this type then we may consider a stock build programme similar to the CTV’s to have craft available without the burden of construction finance and stage payments.”

Diverse Marine & NR Marine Services announce the launch of NR ALPHA

10 June 2024
Diverse Marine and NR Marine Services and proud to announce the launch of the second of class Storm Class CTV, NR ALPHA that is now proudly being displayed at Seawork 2024 in the Port of Southampton on berth VB21. NR ALPHA is a sister to NR PREDATOR delivered in March this year. NR PREDATOR has performed very well on her first contract with higher performance levels and substantially lower fuel burn and emission levels than other similar vessels on the same project. The Storm Class measures 27.6m LOA by 10m BOA and is fitted with a quad IMO Tier-3 Volvo Penta IPS propulsion system. Its unique hull form features a very fine entry with higher buoyancy reserves above the main chines and resistance reducingsolutions integrated into the underbody. A resilient superstructure ensures very low noise and vibration levels in the passenger saloon with the first recording sub 55dBA at full power. NR ALPHA is the first vessel from the Diverse Marine Finance and Lease Programme announced late last year and the first of three vessels being delivered to the scheme this year. The programme allows Diverse Marine to build offshore wind crew transfer vessels to stock for onward lease or sale. The scheme removes the requirement for clients to source construction finance and Diverse Marine can offer the vessels on lease/hire purchase with 0% deposit, a fully funded solution with payments monthly in arrears. Ben Colman, Director of Diverse Marine:“We are delighted to announce the build of NR ALPHA for NR Marine Services.Theperformance of NR PREDATOR has exceeded everybody’s expectations with exceptionally good performance, fuel efficiency and reliability, a testament to the high quality produced by our team at Cowes”.  Owen Nutt, Director of NR Marine Services: “The addition of NR ALPHA to our fleet so soon after NR PREDATOR is testament to the growth and forward plans set out by our business to add high quality, high performance and efficient vessels to our fleet. Diverse Marine’s Storm Class is the result of the KPI’s we provided to Walker Marine Design and the ship yard. With NR PREDATOR all of these KPI’s were met with the vessel proving to be faster and more efficient that predicted. We are very pleased and excited that we can add NR ALPHA to the fleet and provide our clients with class leading vessels that can save £100,000’s of fuel cost annually without any compromise”.
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