Global Port Services, of Aberdeen, has launched a new division supplying crane and installation services to the renewable energy sector.
The launch of Global Wind Projects (GWP) is expected to create 70 Scottish jobs, with three major wind turbine installation contracts already secured by the new business.
It is hoped the firm will become one of the UK and Ireland’s leading names for onshore and offshore turbine installation.
GWP and its immediate parent are both part of Global Energy Group (GEG), the Inverness-based company controlled by Highland businessman Roy MacGregor.
GEG said it had created the specialist unit in response to rapid growth in the renewables sector.
The group already provides a range of energy, port agency and marine logistics services from bases at Aberdeen, Invergordon, Port of Nigg, Glasgow and Northern Ireland.
It also operates a growing fleet of some of the most advanced heavy cranes in the industry, with lifting capacity ranging from 50 to 1,000 tonnes.
GWP and its parent aim to deliver a seamless crane and installation service backed up by their experienced and skilled teams, as well as a modern crane fleet.
GEG said GWP’s new contracts had created 35 jobs, with the Scotland-based team expected to double in size by the third quarter of this year.
The new division was recently engaged by Nordex at the 15-turbine Harting Rig wind farm, in South Lanarkshire, boasting some of the highest turbines installed in the UK.
In June GWP will start work at Nordex’s 12-turbine Cumberhead project, also in South Lanarkshire, while a further contract for Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy at the eight-turbine Longhill development in West Lothian is due to get under way in October.
‘Unprecedented growth’
GWP general manager Ryan Burke, said the firm was ready to take advantage of the “unprecedented growth” seen in onshore and offshore wind around the UK and Ireland.
He added: “With three major onshore contracts already secured, Global Wind Projects recruited 35 skilled turbine technicians this month alone and expects to double the size of the team with three months, with further growth expected beyond that too.”
GEG’s Port of Nigg site is poised to become home to the UK’s largest offshore wind tower manufacturing operation, following a deal with Haizea Wind Group to build a new £110 million facility.
The factory is expected to support more than 400 direct jobs in manufacturing once it is fully operational, providing reskilling opportunities for oil and gas workers.
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