A ceremony attended by dignitaries has marked the official ‘birth date’ for our two new vessels. This significant milestone in the build process has been recognised for centuries as the official ‘birth’ of any new ship and is an important point in time for the Scillonian IV passenger ferry and the cargo vessel, Menawethan.

Invited guests attended Piriou’s shipyard in Vietnam on November 6^th to officially mark the moment, while dignitaries from Britain and France were all present. British Ambassador to Vietnam, Iain Frew, attended the ceremony, along with British Consul General, Ms. Alexandra Smith and her French Counterpart, Mrs Emmanuelle Pavillon-Grosser.

Dignitaries were accompanied by senior management from both shipbuilder Piriou and ISSG. As part of the occasion, a coin was laid in the keel of the vessel, which is a shipbuilding tradition. The ceremony is designed as a kind of blessing, bringing good fortune to the ship and its crew.

Modern construction methods mean that ships are now built in blocks, whereas in the past ships were literally built from the keel up. The ceremony is now recognised as the point at which blocks are joined together. This ceremony follows the ‘steel cutting’ ceremony for the new ships, which took place earlier in the year.