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Image Credit: Haventus
Haventus has successfully obtained a £100 million joint loan from the UK Infrastructure Bank and the Scottish National Investment Bank. This substantial financial injection is earmarked for transforming the Ardersier Port, located east of Inverness, into a pivotal center for fixed and floating offshore wind turbine deployment.
The energy facilities provider plans to construct a new 650-meter quay wall at the port and the necessary infrastructure. This enhancement will allow offshore wind developers and producers of wind power components to utilize the port's capabilities effectively.
Upon completion, Haventus expects the Ardersier Port to be Scotland's premier offshore wind farm deployment port, featuring facilities capable of supporting gigawatt-scale projects.
Positioned within the Cromarty Firth Green Freeport zone, the 450-acre Ardersier Port site will provide essential quayside access and infrastructure tailored for marshalling, integration, manufacturing, and assembly of critical offshore wind components.
Through a joint credit facility, the UK Infrastructure Bank and the Scottish National Investment Bank are contributing £50 million each to this initiative.
This initiative continues Quantum Capital Group's £300 million capital investment last year to aid in Haventus's spearheaded port redevelopment.
Touted as one of the most significant industrial revitalization efforts in the Scottish Highlands in recent years, the project is anticipated to generate hundreds of jobs and substantially augment Scotland's capacity for offshore wind port operations.
Scotland's newly elected First Minister John Swinney said the support from both banks "demonstrates the huge confidence in this new facility and its role in helping deliver a fairer, greener future for everyone."
"Scotland's growing offshore wind capabilities present an era-defining opportunity - not only to achieve a just transition to net zero but to harness the skills which lie across our energy sector and wider supply chain to create thousands of green jobs and transform our regional and national economies," he said. "The Ardersier Port redevelopment, which is central to the ambitions of the ground-breaking Inverness and Cromarty Firth Green Freeport, exemplifies this opportunity."
Haventus chief executive Lewis Gillies welcomed the support from the two banks and Quantum, adding that Ardersier Port was now "poised to become a critical offshore wind hub and an important job creator and enabler."
"It will play a crucial role in helping the country meet its net zero ambitions," he said. "With work now underway on site, we aim to have the facility open and operational in the second half of next year. This progress has been achieved in a very short period, due in large measure to the constructive engagement we have had with the Highland Council, our consenting agencies and regulators and government departments."
In a significant nod to its critical role in the renewable energy sector, the Ardersier Port redevelopment marks the inaugural project jointly financed by the Scottish National Investment Bank and the UK Infrastructure Bank. Both banks recently solidified their partnership by signing a memorandum of understanding highlighting their commitment to collaborative efforts in the renewables arena. This agreement underscores their unified strategy to foster and finance critical infrastructure projects that advance the renewable energy landscape.
"Vast investment is needed in port infrastructure by 2030 in order to fully realise the potential of offshore wind," said UKIB CEO John Flint. "This is a great opportunity to support this crucial sector, alongside the Scottish National Investment Bank, in what will be a nationally significant project for the UK energy transition while also helping to grow the local Scottish economy."
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