The two Scottish bids to become job-creating “freeports” with special tax status have been confirmed by the UK and Scottish government two days after we exclusively revealed the winners.
Forth Ports, which includes Fife, and Cromarty Firth, which operates in the Highlands, were officially named as “green freeports” while Prime Minister Rishi Sunak visited Scotland.
He said: “I am absolutely delighted that the first minister and I can announce the delivery of our shared ambition for people in Scotland today with not one but two excellent Green Freeport areas.”
It’s hoped the awards will create as many 75,000 jobs and boost the local economies.
Deputy First Minister John Swinney said: “This is a milestone achievement in the process to deliver Green Freeports for Scotland.”
Jobs boost in Rosyth and Burntisland
Rosyth and Burntisland are set to be the two biggest winners in Fife from the announcement with their ports set to play a key role in the Forth Ports project.
Dunfermline and West Fife MP Douglas Chapman said the successful bid has the potential to be a massive boost economically for the region as a whole by creating jobs and encouraging businesses to invest.
In Rosyth, it’s hoped the new economic zone will help expand the port, improve shipping logistics and generate more offshore wind farms.
Burntisland’s harbour will be used as a customs site and will be at the centre of major renewable energy projects.
According to Forth Ports, the Fife town will work closely with Leith in Edinburgh across the water.
Between the two of them, the project’s aim is to create the biggest offshore wind development anywhere in Scotland.
Forth Ports chief executive Charles Hammond said: “Together with our consortium partners, our bid will reindustrialise the nation and create large scale economic development.
“Our green freeport will accelerate investment and generate 50,000 new green jobs by acting as a catalyst for new technologies and renewable energy manufacturing.”
But expansion plans in Rosyth have left some locals uneasy over fears it could put nearby wildlife at risk.
Some residents are worried increasing the port’s size to facilitate more business may disturb local bird populations who nest nearby.
The two winning bids were put through a selection process against others including bids in Orkney and a joint application from Aberdeen and Peterhead.
The successful applications will be supported by up to £52 million in start-up funding and will benefit from tax reliefs and other incentives.
The sites are expected to bring forward an estimated £10.8 billion of private and public investment and create over 75,000 new, high-skilled jobs, the UK Government said.
Applicants had to show they would contribute towards environmental targets by 2045 and create new, “green” jobs.
They were also required to set out how they would support high-quality employment opportunities with fair work conditions at their core.
Bosses from the Cromarty Firth consortium say green freeport status will push forward renewables projects in the region and help whisky firms to become more environmentally friendly.
‘Disappointed’
The announcement was seen as a major snub for the north-east where business leaders hoped a new freeport would help ease the region’s transition away from oil and gas.
Businessman Sir Ian Wood, who has been at the helm of the Aberdeen and Peterhead application, said: “We are, of course, hugely disappointed.
“The UK Government’s overly severe application of the Energy Profits Levy and the Scottish Government’s new position supporting a presumption against oil and gas exploration are economically damaging.”
‘Failed Tory gimmick’
But Greens – in power with the SNP in Scotland – opposed the plan.
Scottish Greens finance spokesman Ross Greer said: “There is nothing green about so-called green freeports.
“They are a failed and dated Tory gimmick which hands public cash over to multinational corporations.”