News Archive

Two New Consultants For Caithness General

Who would move from sunny Greece to occasionally chilly Caithness? For Dr Petros Karsaliakos, the weather barely featured in his decision to move to Wick.   �The weather has its own advantages and disadvantages,� he said.  

HIE unveils plans for business space at Inverness Campus

Highlands and Islands Enterprise submitted plans this week for the next phase of construction at Inverness Campus � the first of several state-of-the-art office/lab complexes.   With infrastructure and groundworks now well underway at the 215 acre site, the creation of this speculative unit is part of HIE�s strategy to attract leading life science businesses to the Highlands and Islands.  

European Offshore Wind Centre

The Scottish Government today announced consent for the development of the European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre (EOWDC) in Aberdeen Bay.   The development consists of 11 wind turbines and their connecting cables, sited between two and 4.5 km off the Aberdeenshire coast, capable of generating up to 100 MW, providing enough energy to meet the needs of over 49,000 homes � almost half of the homes in Aberdeen.  

Homelessness falls

There has been a significant fall in the number of people presented as homeless in Scotland, official statistics confirmed today.   There were 8,734 applications for homelessness assistance in the quarter to December 2012 - a 12 per cent drop on the same period in 2011.  

Helicopters Boost Wick John O�Groats Airport To Strong Air Traffic Growth

Passenger numbers at Scotland�s regional airports increased by 2.2% last month.   Latest figures from airport operator HIAL show that its 11 airports handled 87,476 passengers in February, an increase of 1,869 passengers compared to the same month last year.  

Meet the Buyer Event for Caithness and Sutherland Subcontractors

Miller Construction is extending an invitation to subcontractors and suppliers based in the Caithness and Sutherland area to a Meet the Buyer event to find out more about future opportunities for local businesses in the area.   As a Tier 1 contractor with hub North Scotland Limited, Miller Construction is preferred bidder on a �50m pipeline of work to be delivered over the next three years in Wick and Tain and is seeking suitable local partners to deliver these projects and others when they arise.  

The Highland Council � Welfare Reform

New legislation from the UK government means that, from 1 April, a deduction will be imposed on housing benefit claimants in council or housing association homes with a spare room or rooms in their homes.   The new rule is estimated to affect more than 2,200 council house tenants in Highland.  

Advice for landlords on 'Bedroom Tax'

Landlords should consider all possible options and use all reasonable means to prevent evictions of housing tenants struggling to pay rent due to the bedroom tax, Housing Minister Margaret Burgess said today.   The Scottish Government has called for the UK Government�s under occupancy measures, that will cut housing benefit for those deemed to have a spare room, to be scrapped.  

Dingwall & Highland Marts Ltd - Sale 19th March 2013

DINGWALL, Dingwall & Highland Marts Ltd., (March, 19th) sold 86 prime cattle.  Prime bullocks (58) averaged 216.1p (-2.1p) and sold to 233p per kg and �1,597.50 gross.  

Intermediate Preparing to Export course - Caithness and Sutherland

11 April 2013 Highlands and Islands Enterprise, in partnership with Scottish Development International, is offering an Intermediate Preparing to Export course for companies that are already exporting to 2/3 markets and would like to further develop their export capabilities.   � Course kick-off: 2-day residential on 11th & 12th April 2013 (1 nights accommodation and dinner will be provided) � Course continues on: 4 additional sessions held over 6-8 weeks: 25th April, 9th May, 23rd May and 6th June 2013 Location: The Norseman Hotel, Wick This programme is fully funded by Smart Exporter, an ambitious new international trade skills programme, and is targeted at Scottish companies that are already exporting and wish to develop their export capabilities to grow their business.