Redevelopment of Scottish Port Begins as Owner Secures GBP 400 Million for Offshore Wind Upgrade

May 21, 2024, by Adrijana Buljan

Haventus, the owner of the Ardersier Port in the Moray Firth, Scotland, has taken a final investment decision and kicked off construction work on redeveloping the port to serve both fixed-bottom and floating offshore wind projects. The revamped port is expected to open in the second half of 2025.

This month, Haventus was granted a GBP 100 million (approximately 117 million) joint credit facility from the Scottish National Investment Bank and UK Infrastructure Bank with GBP 50 million (approx. EUR 58.5 million) investment from each.

This follows a GBP 300 million (approx. 351 million) investment commitment by the energy investment firm Quantum Capital Group in 2023 when Haventus began the redevelopment of Ardersier Port.

The construction work has now started on the site of the former McDermott construction yard, which will be transformed into an energy transition facility supporting offshore wind, as well as the decommissioning of the aged oil and gas infrastructure in the North Sea, Haventus said in a press release from last year.

Initial development, enabling access to the 182-hectare (450-acre) site, will see the construction of a 659-metre quay wall, including RoRo access and a 420-metre main quay capable of accommodating multiple berths. Associated quayside will be constructed, with a loadbearing capacity of 25t/m2, according to the information on the project webpage.

As part of the upgrade, the 160-metre-wide channel will be dredged to 12.4 metres CD.

Haventus could also build an additional 1 kilometre of quay wall in the future, subject to demand, according to the company.

On land, the site with immediate quayside access will span up to approximately 81 hectares (200 acres) and have a load-bearing capacity in excess of 10t/m2, making it ideal for marshalling operations. The eastern end of the main site provides around 61 hectares (150 acres) of space for assembly, storage and manufacturing, the port owner says.

Haventus Chief Executive, Lewis Gillies, 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.”

Haventus took over the Ardersier Port in 2021 from Clowes Developments, which acquired it in 2016, after the previous owner, Port of Ardersier Ltd, went into administration in November 2015.

Port of Ardersier Ltd also had plans to make the port a hub for offshore wind.

In 2013, the company submitted applications to the Highland Council, Marine Scotland and Transport Scotland for consent needed to redevelop the site. In 2014, the Highland Council gave the planning consent and the Scottish Government granted a marine licence.

According to the news from 2015, when the then-port owner went into administration, market conditions at the time slowed down the redevelopment project and Port of Ardersier Ltd was unable to “get things moving fast enough to satisfy the debt attached to the site” that the company said was inherited from the former occupant.

Now, Ardersier Port has not only started construction work to redevelop the former McDermott oil rig fabrication yard but has also joined the new Scottish Offshore Wind Ports Alliance (SOWPA) which gathers 13 ports with an aim to optimise the opportunities from offshore wind.

Last year, Haventus joined the Green Freeport consortium that includes the Port of Cromarty Firth, Port of Inverness, Global Energy Group, The Highland Council, the University of the Highlands and Islands, Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd and Inverness Chamber of Commerce.