Subsea Micropiles is to invest more than £5 million in a new manufacturing facility at the Port of Montrose, making components used to secure floating offshore wind turbines in deep waters.
The facility will serve projects in Scotland and international markets and is expected to create around 80 jobs. Scottish Enterprise is providing a £1.45 million Regional Selective Assistance grant, following a £6.7 million investment in the company through the Scottish National Investment Bank. The support forms part of the Scottish Government’s £500 million commitment to offshore wind ports and the supply chain.
SSE has also named Montrose as its preferred location for the operations and maintenance base for its planned Berwick Bank B offshore wind farm, which is expected to create a further 100 jobs.
First Minister John Swinney welcomed both announcements on a visit to the port.
Subsea Micropiles is a foundations company with offices in Westhill, Aberdeenshire, and an existing base of operations at Montrose.
Derek Robertson, its chief executive, said: “Ultimately, we see significant potential to establish high-volume production of our anchor and foundation systems in Montrose as the market develops. These are scalable solutions which can be manufactured locally, with the potential to retain significant economic benefit in Scotland through engineering, vessel services and offshore supply chain.”
He described the Scottish Enterprise funding as “an important part of enabling that next phase of growth”.
Reuben Aitken, managing director of investment and international at Scottish Enterprise, said: “We’re proud to support the company’s expansion in Scotland through our £1.45 million funding, helping unlock more than £5 million of investment and create 81 jobs.”
If built to its full potential capacity of 4.1GW across all three phases, Berwick Bank could become the world’s largest offshore wind farm on completion.
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Stuart Hood, director of offshore wind operations at SSE Renewables, said: “Our decision to choose Montrose as the preferred operations base for Berwick Bank B and create 100 new jobs reflects the strength of the port, its people and the local supply chain.”
Swinney said: “Scotland’s ports are critical enablers of our offshore wind ambitions and key economic assets for surrounding communities, with the Port of Montrose set to become one of the world’s largest offshore wind operations and maintenance hubs, supporting the Berwick Bank, Seagreen and Inch Cape offshore wind farms.”
