Four companies in the energy and engineering industries are the latest to benefit from the Scottish Loan Fund.

Finance secretary John Swinney visited Red Spider Technology, an oil and gas company based in the north-east, yesterday to announce that it and three other "ambitious businesses" would have a guaranteed £5m loan plus the option of borrowing up to £9m.

A total of £15m has now been committed to Scottish companies since the Fund was launched last year, to help businesses that cannot get bank loans to support growth plans.

The other companies receiving support from the Fund are Booth Welsh Automation, ROVOP and an unnamed Aberdeen business.

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North-east based Red Spider, which manufactures and supplies a range of unique remotely operated tools to the oil & gas industry, has set its sights on increasing trade with Asia and Europe.

CEO Steve Nivol said the company's growth plans are "aggressive".

Ayrshire-based engineering services firm Booth Welsh Automation employs over 200 people at its Stevenston base and its loan will be used to help fund forecast growth in new contracts.

ROVOP is a specialist operator of Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) servicing the offshore oil & gas and renewable sectors.

The business is seeing a high level of enquiries, and funding will allow it to buy additional ROVs to be used in fulfilling international long-term wind farm contracts.

Jim McFarlane, managing director of Scottish Enterprise, said the loans could boost economic recovery in Scotland.

He said: "We want more companies across Scotland who boast growth potential to be ambitious for the future and access finance to deliver business growth."

(NE)