Offshore Wind Boost for Weldex (UK)

WELDEX, the Inverness-based crane company which saw a £100 million valuation placed on it following a private equity deal this summer, has won a clutch of orders to work on offshore wind farms.

The company, the largest crawler crane business in the UK, will start work in March on multi-million pound contracts for the Walney 2, Sherringham Shoal and London Array wind farms off the coast of England.

It is also at an advanced stage of negotiations to work on London’s huge Crossrail project and managing director Doug McGilvray said he was “extremely hopeful” of working on the project in the new year. It is currently working on London’s Olympic Stadium and Glasgow’s Commonwealth Games Arena.

Weldex employs 130 people, has a turnover of £28m and operates from six sites in the UK.

It was originally established to service the oil and gas industry but has diversified into infrastructure projects and the renewable energy sector.

“We have worked hard to specialise in the renewables market and there is a great deal of further activity in the offshore wind market through to 2018 and we are in good position to secure contracts,” said McGilvray.

While there have been few major projects in the Scottish market of late, the company is hopeful of winning work on the new Forth Road Crossing and the upgrade of Longannet power station.

In June this year Edinburgh-based Dunedin Capital Partners bought a stake in the company from the founding family. The acquisition was Dunedin’s largest to date.

By Perry Gourley (scotsman)

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Source: scotsman, December 24, 2010