Two of Scotland’s energy companies have become preferred bidders to take over a wind-turbine plant at Machrihanish.
Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) and Marsh Wind Technology (MWT) have formed a joint venture to take over the Argyll factory, the future of which was thrown into doubt when its Danish owner, Skykon, filed for bankruptcy.
The plant is currently in the hands of administrators Ernst and Young. They secured a deal in January to resume production until a buyer could be found – Siemens agreed to fund existing work on 30 wind-turbine towers and to pay the workforce their outstanding arrears. Since then, administrators have been working through the expressions of interest in the business.
They have now confirmed that Wind Towers Ltd, made up of SSE and MWT, are the preferred bidders. The news came as the first minister, Alex Salmond, was visiting the plant. He described the announcements as “very welcome developments and underline the industry’s confidence in the skills of the workforce.”
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The plant is located on the site of the old RAF base at Machrihanish and forms an important part of the economy in Argyll. As one of the area’s largest private-sector employers, its loss would have been a major blow. The sale is likely to be completed within weeks, though one of the administrators, Andrew Davison, said there were still “significant matters” to resolve. In the view of SSE chief executive Ian Marchant, the plant should be sustainable with the right business plan and management. “As the market for offshore wind turbines develops from 2013 onwards,” Marchant said, “it should be possible to expand the operation to fully utilise the excellent facilities which are now available at the site.” Marchant acknowledged that “some restructuring” would be needed, but assured the workforce of 130 that most would be retained. He added that the joint-venture partners would also be looking at “potential redeployment opportunities”. This will include a new facility, nearing completion, which will allow the plant to build turbine towers for offshore windfarms. “Both partners believe that this plant has an important role in building the supply-chain base for the growing wind-energy sector,” said William Marsh of MWT, “and that it will have a healthy future in the medium term as the demand for turbine components expands. It is our aim to build the Campbeltown operation into a stable and reliable partner.” The news also gave the first minister encouragement that the Scottish government’s Green Agenda was still on track. During the visit, Mr Salmond explained that Scotland had “an established wealth of skills and talent in energy engineering, as well as the natural resources, to become the green energy powerhouse of Europe.”Donate to us: support independent, intelligent, in-depth Scottish journalism from just 3p a day
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