Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Shetland space port hit by further planning delay

The space port at Saxa Vord is seen as a key development for the UK’s space ambitions.
The space port at Saxa Vord is seen as a key development for the UK’s space ambitions.

A decision on whether the planned space port at Saxa Vord in Unst will get planning permission has again been delayed.

It had been anticipated that the application would go before the council’s planning committee on Monday (21 February) after Historic Environment Scotland withdrew its objection to the development on the site of Second World War radar station at Lamba Ness.

However, when the planning papers for Monday’s meeting were published earlier this week the Saxa Vord item did not appear on the agenda.

A spokesperson for SaxaVord UK Spaceport said the SIC has now confirmed to them that the application will not be on the agenda on Monday, and has given no clear indication when it will be discussed.

The proposed space port at Saxa Vord is seen as a key development for the UK’s space ambitions, while US defence company Lockheed Martin, a partner in the project, is required to deliver the UK government’s Pathfinder project in 2022.

Frank Strang, chief executive, SaxaVord UK Spaceport. Photo: Ross Johnston/Newsline Media

SaxaVord UK Spaceport’s chief executive Frank Strang said it would be inappropriate to comment in detail at this point “as we still have a live planning application”.

But he added: “SIC is acutely aware of the economic benefits that the space economy is bringing to Unst and the North Isles and how important Shetland is becoming to the UK and global space industry.

“We, as a company, cannot do any more to expedite the opportunity and I am glad to say that all the statutory hurdles for a formal planning consent have been mitigated or withdrawn. We have waited 14 months for a decision; we can wait a few weeks more.”

The council’s development director Neil Grant said: “This is a complex planning application and recently there has been great deal of information flowing between the applicant, ourselves and statutory consultees. We are working hard to ensure this is presented to the planning committee for a decision as soon as possible.”

The delay comes as those behind the project prepare for a rare ministerial visit to the isles.

Minister for Scotland Iain Stewart. Phote UK Government/PA Wire

The parliamentary undersecretary of state for Scotland Iain Stewart is due to visit Shetland later this week and is expected to visit the SaxaVord spaceport site in Unst to highlight the growing interest in orbital space innovations and the government’s space strategy.

Read more: