Plans have been approved to establish a new Highlands Operations and Maintenance (O&M) base as part of the £2.6 billion Beatrice Offshore Windfarm Limited (BOWL) development.

The historic Telford buildings in Wick will be redeveloped to support the construction of the major wind farm scheme. Redevelopment work is set to begin early this year.

The two buildings will be restored in line with BOWL's £10 million investment in Wick. The O&M base will support the project during both construction and operation, employing around 90 people from Offshore Technicians to Office Administrators.

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First developed by Scottish engineer Thomas Telford in 1807, the buildings have a long history of supporting marine work.

Steven Wilson, BOWL Project Manager, said: "For a project of this scale we wanted to ensure we bring benefits both to the communities that we work in and the Scottish and wider UK supply chain.

"We have been delighted by the support the Wick community has shown towards our plans for the Telford buildings. I know we are going to create a lasting legacy for the town in the redevelopment and the creation of jobs to help keep the Beatrice blades spinning and supplying the sustainable energy people need."

The Beatrice project involves building a 588MW 84-turbine wind farm in the Outer Moray Firth. Once completed, it is expected to generate enough power for around 450,000 homes.

(LM/CD)