The Highlands could see as many as one thousand green jobs in the energy sector as the lengthy deadlock over a northern Scotland industrial complex comes to an end.
Hopes are high that the Nigg yard may be able to take advantage of the UK’s plan for 7000 offshore wind turbines by the year 2020.
Currently, turbines are shipped in from overseas manufacturers due to a lack of capacity in the UK. Nigg is seen, however, as a prime potential location for turbine fabrication due to its proximity to the planned offshore wind farms.
KBR, the engineering and construction firm headquartered in Houston, Texas, owns two-thirds of the property, and has indicated to The Herald that it is not in negotiations at this time about the sale of the facility, even though a preferred bidder has come forward.
Public agencies are eager to revitalise the facility, which once employed 5,500 workers to build oil rigs. At this time, just 150 employees remain.
A master plan for the development of the site, based on multiple users, projects more than 1,000 jobs at the facility, sustainable for up to 20 years, and an injection of £65 million into the local economy annually.
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