Haventus, the owner of Ardersier Port, has joined the Inverness and Cromarty Firth Green Freeport (ICFGF) consortium – comprising members Port of Cromarty Firth, Port of Inverness, Global Energy Group, The Highland Council, the University of the Highlands and Islands, Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd and Inverness Chamber of Commerce.

Haventus has begun the redevelopment of the 450-acre Ardersier Port site, transforming the former McDermott Yard into a leading energy transition facility and unlocking the site's potential to enable the deployment of major offshore wind projects and the wider energy transition opportunity. Redevelopment of the port will create local employment and support the supply chain, contribute to net zero and provide wider benefits to the port's local communities and the Highland economy.

Haventus is backed by an initial £300m investment by Quantum Energy Partners, a US investment firm that provides private capital to the global energy industry.

Haventus CEO, Lewis Gillies said: "Haventus is delighted to become a member of the Inverness and Cromarty Firth Green Freeport consortium. Green freeport status will deliver a range of investment incentives for port users, designed to facilitate international trade and stimulate local economic growth.

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"At a point in time when we have the most exciting energy opportunity for Scotland and the UK since the discovery of North Sea oil and gas, it was important for us to become a member of the Green Freeport, which will deliver significant benefits for businesses and communities in the region. We look forward to working with our consortium partners to deliver these."

Speaking on behalf of Inverness and Cromarty Firth Green Freeport, Chair Jim Smith welcomed Haventus to the consortium. He said: "We are delighted that Haventus has joined the consortium. It brings a fifth port facility into the Green Freeport and aligns with the Freeport's objectives of facilitating offshore windfarm construction and accelerating Scotland's transition to net zero. Inverness and Cromarty Firth Green Freeport is perfectly positioned to become a thriving hub for the renewables industry. Green Freeport status will build a pipeline of sustainable jobs that will benefit not only Scotland, but the wider UK."

The Inverness and Cromarty Firth Green Freeport Ltd (ICF) is a company limited by guarantee and was borne out of Opportunity Cromarty Firth, the consortium which led the successful bid to become a Green Freeport. The award by the Scottish and UK Governments is set to "revolutionise" the Highland economy and stimulate major new manufacturing activity locally and elsewhere in Scotland and the UK.

The company is backed by port owners Port of Cromarty Firth, Global Energy Group, Port of Inverness, Highland Deephaven and Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd, alongside more than thirty regional, national and international businesses, public sector organisations and academic bodies.

ICF believes the creation of the Green Freeport will maximise local and Scotland-wide benefits from a pipeline of renewable energy projects, placing the Highlands at the heart of the drive towards net-zero and creating tens of thousands of jobs. This will also help reverse decades of depopulation in the region; giving young people the choice to stay and work in exciting green careers in the Highlands.