Marine Services
The range of ports and harbours within Marine Services are both varied and diverse; from the Oil Port of Scapa Flow that hosts multiple ship to ship transfer operations of crude oil and vessels serving the Flotta Oil Terminal, to the major harbours of Kirkwall and Stromness that receive on average 70 cruise Ships annually making Orkney the most popular cruise ship destination in Scotland, to the remote island facilities of North and South Isles which receive almost daily lifeline services from our fleet of 13 Inter Island Ferries carrying over 320,000 passengers annually.
Scottish mainland ro-ro ferry services via Northlink Ferries operate on a daily basis to the ports of Aberdeen, Lerwick from Hatston and Scrabster from Stromness; a container service operates twice weekly from Lerwick and Aberdeen to Kirkwall.
In addition to the larger vessels using the port facilities, there is a strong commercial inshore fishing fleet located throughout the islands as well as the ever increasing pleasure craft fleet some of which call into our 3 Marinas in Kirkwall, Stromness and Westray... Berthing and landing facilities are provided throughout the islands to meet the needs for these sectors.
Marine Services provides all pilot launch and pilotage services directly as well as Vessel Traffic Services for Scapa Flow and approaches and the Kirkwall Harbour area.
The emergence of the Renewable Energy sector in Orkney and the awarding of Crown Estate leases in Orkney waters this autumn, will add to the considerable growth that this industry has witnessed in recent months.
Orkney is firmly placed on the map as the centre for the development of wave and tidal Renewable Energy in the United Kingdom. This places Towage Services based in Scapa, as a key logistical element in the installation and servicing of Renewable Energy devices in Orkney waters.
In recent months, Towage services have experienced increased activity in the installation and servicing of wave and tidal devices and the utilisation of quayside for energy device construction has been significant.
Complete information on all facilities and services can be found on the Orkney Islands Council Marine Services website from the 'Related Sites' section of this page.
