The Aberdeen City Region Deal could ultimately be worth £1.2billion to the north-east. The Scottish and UK Governments as well as Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire councils signed off on the historic £250million package of support for the region yesterday.
The firm behind ambitious plans to create a floating windfarm off the north-east coast have promised it will deliver a jobs bonanza. Energy giant Statoil said last night its Hywind scheme would generate hundreds of posts during the construction, 15 miles from shore.
Statoil's flagship Hywind project could be replicated in regions such as the US and Japan, according to the company's head of asset management.
Plans to build the world’s largest offshore windfarm off the north-east coast have been approved. Norwegian energy giant Statoil will erect five 600ft turbines tethered to the bed of the North Sea, 15 miles from Peterhead. The Scottish Government has today granted the firm a marine licence, allowing construction work on the huge structures to begin.
Paradigm Flow Services has gained certification for a new addition to its line of products. The company said it had received DNV GL certification for its Dry-Flo deluge system testing technology. The system has been qualified in accordance with DNV-DSS-401 technology qualification management.
IMES Marine Safety Systems (IMES MMS) has invested £250,000 in upgrading its quayside facility at Montrose Port. The company, has been leasing the site from the Montrose Port Authority (MPA), has opened a new workshop and warehousing facility in a bid to increase its customer coverage. The 20,000 square foot quayside facility will allow IMES MMS to provide support vessels for lifesaving equipment inspections combined with lifting inspection and testing, marine inspectionsm and winch spooling operations.
United States Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is staging the latest round of a legal fight against an offshore wind farm project near a Scottish golf resort he owns. Scottish Government ministers approved proposals for an 11-turbine scheme off the Aberdeenshire coast in 2013. Billionaire businessman Mr Trump, president of The Trump Organisation, is against the plan and says the wind farm will spoil the view from his luxury golf links at the Menie Estate.
Two north-east businessmen have launched a new engineering firm targeting the subsea, drilling and renewable-energy sectors. Stuart Mackie and Innes Smith, managing director and engineering manager respectively at Aberdeenshire manufacturing and fabrication company Fabritech UK, have invested more than £500,000 in machinery, tooling and software for their new venture. They have called it Engineering Solutions and Rental (ESR) and initially based it at Fabritech’s headquarters at Insch Business Park.
Energetica faces a challenge to attract new overseas investment into north east Scotland whilst avoiding robbing 'Peter to pay Paul'.
The £2billion NorthConnect project to connect Aberdeenshire to the Scandinavian electricity network has been approved by Aberdeenshire Council.
Plans to expand one of Aberdeenshire’s biggest windfarms have been lodged. The owners of Glens of Foudland, near Huntly, first unveiled plans to add another nine turbines to their existing 20-mast development last year. After a public consultation revised plans for seven 328ft turbines have now been submitted to Aberdeenshire Council.
Once the details of the summit are announced, Aberdeenshire Council will make sure it is fully involved. The oil and gas industry is incredibly important, not only to the North East economy, but to the economy of Scotland and the rest of the UK. We have established good working relationships with the private sector over many years and understand the challenges facing the energy industry today. The area benefits when oil prices are high, but this also brings challenges impacting on house prices and affecting the local recruitment market. It’s important that we consider the impact of falling oil prices, the likely effect on the economy and steps we can collectively take to support the industry.