SPR is committed to investing across the west coast of Scotland. We aim to promote the benefit of education, re-skilling, and the development of long-term sustainable employment opportunities within the industry to workers across the west coast of Scotland and beyond.

The MachairWind team will aim to work with local supply chain to leverage their knowledge of the region, as well as provide opportunities to enter the offshore wind industry for those looking to diversify their skill set and offering, which could maximise future working opportunities.

Operation & Maintenance (O&M) Base – Local Opportunities 

If we decide to locate the project O&M base on one of the local islands or in mainland Argyll and Bute, this would lead to the creation of high-quality, long-term local jobs over the life of the windfarm (25 years). There are several factors to consider when choosing the location of an O&M base, this includes accessibility, port capabilities and ease of employability in the area. We are open to any input on this, please contact us if you have any suggestions regarding the location of the proposed O&M base. 
 

Supply Chain Fund

We’ve already confirmed that we will be investing £25 million in a Supply Chain Stimulus Fund as part of the MachairWind project. This is in addition to direct project investment in supply chain facilities and will directly support the Scottish supply chain. The fund will support investment in Scottish infrastructure and facilities for offshore wind and help companies innovate and upskill and become a key part of the clean energy future. Further information about our fund will be shared in due course, so keep up to date here.

Supply Chain Development Statement

Supply Chain Event  

We participated in a supply chain event in Oban in July where local Argyll & Bute companies were able to find out  about the opportunities available to them and how to get involved. The event began with networking between businesses, a direct update from ScottishPower Renewables and talks from supply chain businesses that have grown from our East Anglia offshore wind projects. Following this, we had sessions from businesses within the local area as well as a focus on skills development and how we can all support the journey to Net Zero. Lastly, we had an engaging meet the expert session, where local supply chain could select parts of the MachairWind team they wanted to hear more about. Overall, the event was very useful to both suppliers and SPR. The MachairWind team will continue to work with local supply chain to leverage their knowledge of the region and provide opportunities to enter the offshore wind industry. Thus, we hope to attend similar events in the future.