An Inverness marine engineering group has saved nine jobs in Forres with its acquisition of a fish farming technology firm.
Gael Force did not disclose how much it paid for Mohn Aqua, but the firm said it has rescued the Moray business which had been facing “an uncertain future” without further investment.
Mohn Aqua had been formed in 2011 by Norwegian investors who bought up assets of Bennex Aquaculture, a maker of cameras for fish farms.
The company became part of a group which included operations in Norway. In 2008, a move to the Enterprise Park Forres saw the firm become Mohn Aqua Group’s production and research and development (R&D) hub. In 2013, Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) backed the group with a £250,000 R&D grant.
In a statement, Gael Force said the Norwegian-owned Mohn Aqua had been facing an uncertain future without further investment and the prospects of redundancies. Staff numbers had peaked at 15 in the past two years and currently sits at nine full time employees.
Gael Force said it plans to invest in the development, production and servicing of the Mohn Aqua product range, which includes underwater cameras and sensors and acoustic deterrent devices. This will help create a more secure future for a number of employees at the Forres premises and support them in extending the market reach across the UK and overseas.
Stewart Graham, Gael Force Group managing director, said: “Mohn Aqua’s product range is an excellent fit with the rest of our aquaculture and marine product range. While the firm was facing difficulties, we see a viable operation which immediately supports the core workforce. On that basis we are prepared to invest in the business and integrate it into the Gael Force Group.
“The skilled engineers in Forres will help develop other Gael Force products for the aquaculture markets, including exports. We are very excited about the long term growth opportunity we see in aquaculture both in Scotland and Internationally. Gael Force, enhanced by this acquisition, is ideally placed to capitalise on that opportunity.”
The Gael Force Group was established in 1983. It has grown from a Hebridean based manufacturer of fishing creels and pots, to a multifaceted marine and engineering business, serving markets throughout the UK and Europe. The group has bases in Inverness, Forres, Stornoway, Glasgow, and Plymouth. Its activities include the manufacture of feeding barges, fishing creels, anchors and mooring systems, and other marine equipment. It also provides engineering services to the aquaculture, water treatment, distillery and processing industries.
