Plans have been revealed to build a new £31 million subsea manufacturing campus in Montrose, Angus to support the global oil and gas industry.

Baker Hughes, a GE company (BHGE), has pledged to develop the manufacturing centre of excellence across a 35-acre site at their existing location in Montrose to pioneer state-of-the-art manufacturing processes for subsea equipment, such as virtual reality tools, industrial 3D printing, automation and sensor-equipped machines.

Backed by a £4.9 million grant from Scottish Enterprise, the scheme will create 100 new jobs and will be among the most advanced facilities of its kind anywhere in the world.

Announcing the funding as she addressed the Scottish Manufacturing Advisory Service annual conference in Cumbernauld, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: "Manufacturing, which employs more than 180,000 people in Scotland, is crucial to the success of our economy. Therefore I welcome the ambitious plans by BHGE to create a world-leading subsea centre of excellence in Montrose, supported by Scottish Government funding.

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"This facility will bring new jobs and investment to Scotland. And as one of the most advanced centres of its type in the world, it will underline our international reputation for oil and gas innovation, developing the products and services the industry needs for the future."

Graham Gillies, Vice President-Subsea Production Systems & Services, BHGE, said: "This is very welcome news for the oil and gas industry, and for the UK manufacturing sector in particular. We are investing in our facilities globally and our collaborative approach with Scottish Enterprise is a strong example of how we are supporting a more sustainable future for this industry.

"Subsea technology is undoubtedly one of the UK's greatest export success stories, with industry-leading technology and solutions being designed and manufactured here, and installed across basins worldwide."

Paul Lewis, Managing Director at Scottish Enterprise, added: "Scotland's oil and gas industry, and in particular the subsea sector, is in the vanguard of global industrial development in this field and BHGE is at the forefront.

"We are pleased to be able to support this exciting project, which is testament to BHGE's vision and ambition and the company's skilled and talented workforce here in Scotland."

(LM/MH)