A man has died after being run down by a dumper truck at an electricity substation.
Colleagues said he was hit by an earth-moving vehicle which was being used to carry gravel.
Emergency services were called to the site at Blackhillock between Keith and Huntly but the man was pronounced dead at the scene.
He was employed by contractor BAM Nuttall, which is working on upgrading the substation for Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) at Blackhillock.
He will not be named until next of kin have been informed.
Work at the site – which is the largest of its kind in the UK – has been halted until Monday to allow police and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to carry out a joint investigation.
It is understood staff were called into offices to be told about the tragedy, which happened around 9am yesterday.
Several police cars could be seen entering and leaving the site during the day.
BAM Nuttall has been building new substations in a partnership with Siemens.
The firm is currently doing groundwork at Blackhillock in preparation for specialist equipment to be installed.
Yesterday locals living near the substation said they were shocked someone had died at the site.
One said: “They are very conscious about health and safety there.
“You can’t even get close to going through the gate without having a hard hat and high-visibility vest on.”
A spokesman for BAM Nuttall confirmed one of its employees had died “following injuries sustained in an incident”.
Stephen Fox, chief executive of the firm, said: “Our thoughts and deepest condolences go out to all of the family, friends and colleagues of our employee, who was involved in this tragic incident.
“We are working closely with all relevant agencies and authorities and a full investigation is under way.”
Major construction work is being carried out at the Blackhillock substation to connect Moray to Caithness with a subsea power cable.
The substation has been expanded as part of the project, which is not due to be completed until 2018.
Blackhillock is the main office for the project in Moray, which has about 140 people working on it every day in the region.
Colin Nicol, managing director of SSEN, also sent his condolences to the family and staff affected.
He said: “We are offering our full support to Siemens BAM as they liaise with the relevant authorities and commence the investigation.”
A police spokeswoman said: “Police and HSE are making inquiries following the death of a man at 8.50am.
“Inquiries are at an early stage to establish the circumstances and next of kin. As with all sudden deaths a report will be submitted to the
procurator fiscal.”
An HSE spokesman said: “We are aware and are investigating with Police Scotland.”
