Caithness Map :: Links to Site Map Great value Unlimited Broadband from an award winning provider  

 

HIE REPORTS ON YEAR OF RECORD INVESTMENT

13th May 2007

Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) will report on a year of record investment in the Highland economy when it delivers its annual review to the May board meeting on May 15th.

Head of strategic planning and research, Alastair Nicolson, will tell board members in Thurso that all primary measure targets were exceeded and significant progress made against key strategic projects in a year that saw the network invest £118m in the regional economy.

One of HIE's biggest investments was in the UHI Millennium Institute for which a £4.9m commitment over three years has been agreed to consolidate the drive to university title, complementing the steady build of academic staff with 48 senior research positions now filled.

Highland 2007, the Scottish Year of Highland Culture, got off to a buoyant start in January and promises high profile events still to come such as the Elton John concert in Inverness, the World Mountain Bike championships in Lochaber, the Outsider festival in Aviemore and the Connect Argyll music festival. It will be further complemented, board members will be told, by the opening this autumn of the refurbished Eden Court Theatre in Inverness for which HIE responded to an application for additional assistance.

Broadband has now been taken up by 59 per cent of organisations in the Highlands and Islands and significant progress is being made on the development of renewable energy projects. The network-managed construction of the European Marine Energy Centre's tidal test facilities in Orkney are almost complete, with its first client, Open Hydro, about to connect to the grid.

The £23m Centre for Health Science in Inverness is developing on time and on budget with Phase I completed in September 2006 and Phase II scheduled for occupation by spring 2008.

A short-term lease has been awarded for the manufacturing yard at Arnish on Lewis after former tenant Camcal went into administration. The current tenant is completing work outstanding from Camcal's order book and assets have been acquired by the network to enable a fully operational manufacturing facility to be leased.

A further £12m was committed over four years to the post-Dounreay regeneration action plan in Caithness and Sutherland established with other partner agencies and recruitment is underway to appoint additional key personnel. The network has opened a part-time office at Dounreay to assist prospective business start-up enquiries and a supported business incubator unit 'Innovation Forss' was launched. The Decommissioning and Environmental Remediation Centre (DERC) and T3UK - each centres of excellence for training and research into decommissioning techniques, were officially opened during the year.

Land acquisition negotiations at Inverness Airport will shortly be concluded for the provision of a new business park and work on an airport rail halt should start by the end of the year with funding from HITRANS.

The Moray 2020 initiative saw significant progress with a clean manufacturing facility completed at Forres, a new office under construction at Keith and land secured for a business park in Buckie.

In 2006/07 HIE's strengthening communities group assisted the acquisition of over 500 new community assets and helped 198 community groups increase their range of activity. It assisted 14 community land acquisitions and provided advice to the social enterprise sector, particularly on identifying and securing procurement opportunities.

Under the heading of developing skills, ambitions were exceeded in both supporting businesses to increase workforce skills (target 655), and supporting people to move towards or into sustainable employment (target 2405) - each goal was overachieved by nearly 25 per cent.

As part of HIE's growing businesses objective, 560 new businesses were helped to start up and over 300 existing firms helped to expand.

There was a further encouraging result in the private sector earning index, which measures wage levels for HIE network-assisted jobs, as it exceeded expectations at 116 per cent. The number of businesses engaging in overseas trade rose to 175 against a target of 160. The network handled 28 inward investment enquiries leading to five new businesses and two existing clients expanding in the area.

Analysis shows that £75m invested in businesses and communities by the network levered £190m from the private sector and other funding sources while HIE was also able to bring important influence to key issues for the region such as transport strategy and islands policy.

The Highlands and Islands Community Energy Company (HICEC) assisted 28 community wind farm projects through the technical development stage with three now submitted for planning consent and 67 smaller projects completed such as the new wood fuel heating system at Lochaber College.

The network continued to promote innovation with active involvement in creating a new campus for Inverness College and the establishment of the Distance Lab technology centre which will be delivered across the region.

Following HIE's internal audit of the £50m of European grants awarded under the Highlands and Islands Special Transitional Programme (HISTP), £1m was identified as eligible for decommitment. This sum was reallocated to the Highlands and Islands Partnership Programme for re-investment in the region.

Success in key sectors included the approval of a £5.5m funding package for the Balcas combined heat and power plant in Invergordon which will create 38 full-time jobs, an agreement to administer a national development fund for Scotland's music industry and productive dialogue between the Department of Trade and Industry and particular life science companies.

In the south of Skye, work is continuing on the £7.2m Fàs Centre for Creative and Cultural Identity, scheduled to open in December this year, which will complement the Gaelic College Sabhal Mor Ostaig at Sleat.

HIE has further contributed to the Dunoon and National Park strategic gateway framework and action plan to increase the attractiveness of Dunoon, the Clyde islands and Cowal, and the marine science initiative in North Argyll is forging ahead with Integrin Advanced BioSystems Ltd entering negotiations to move into a new bespoke laboratory in Oban.

In Lochaber, BSW Timber is preparing to move to the site vacated by Arjo Wiggins and negotiations are now underway with the network over the purchase of land at Annat, adjacent to the new site.

Following a ballot of residents on Raasay in the HIE Skye and Wester Ross area last month, funding will now be sought for a £3.5m project to start later this year to refurbish Raasay House as an outdoor activities base.

The full report can be read at
http://www.hie.co.uk/hie-board-meetings-minutes.html

 

Related Businesses

 

Related Articles

Scots Aquaculture Firms Encouraged To Get Involved In Sector's Premier Global EventThumbnail for article : Scots Aquaculture Firms Encouraged To Get Involved In Sector's Premier Global Event
Companies operating in Scotland's aquaculture supply chain industries are being encouraged to get involved in a major global networking opportunity.   Aqua Nor is the world's premier event for the sector and a focal point for new customers and investors who are interested in Scotland.  
Further Delay To Reopening Funicular RailwayThumbnail for article : Further Delay To Reopening Funicular Railway
The much-anticipated return of the funicular railway at Cairngorm Mountain will not take place in December, as had been hoped.   Contractor Balfour Beatty has substantially completed an extensive remediation programme to strengthen the 1.8km viaduct, however detailed inspections have shown that further work is required in some areas.  
West Coast Sand Mine Steps Up ProductionThumbnail for article : West Coast Sand Mine Steps Up Production
A sand mining company in Lochaber is set to double its production and increase annual turnover by more than £2.6m.   Lochaline Quartz Sand Limited (LQS) has secured up to £230,000 investment from Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) towards the £855,000 costs of upgrading equipment on site.  
HIEs New Head Of Business Growth Keen To Support More BusinessesThumbnail for article : HIEs New Head Of Business Growth Keen To Support More Businesses
The newly appointed head of business growth for Highlands and Island Enterprise (HIE) in Argyll and the Islands is to focus on expanding the agency's portfolio of business clients.   Liam Orr, originally from Benderloch near Oban, took up the post in early December and leads HIE’s business growth team across an area covering Argyll and Bute, Arran and the Cumbraes.  
Aviemore Adventure Tourism Firm Achieves Milestones In SustainabilityThumbnail for article : Aviemore Adventure Tourism Firm Achieves Milestones In Sustainability
An Aviemore-based adventure tourism operator has made significant progress in sustainability over the past two years by investing in e-bikes, e-vehicles and a carbon labelling system.   Wilderness Scotland has reduced its scope 1 & 2 carbon emissions by 16 percent through its commitment to business decarbonisation.  
Cairngorm Gets Set To Welcome Return Of Mountain Railway
The funicular railway at Cairngorm Mountain looks set to be back in action towards the end of December or early in the new year.   Contractor Balfour Beatty has confirmed that, weather permitting, its current programme of remediation works on the viaduct that supports the railway is due to finish in the next week to 10 days, after which teams working for the company plan to demobilise from the mountainside.  
Argyll Chocolate Firm Expands To Meet Growing DemandThumbnail for article : Argyll Chocolate Firm Expands To Meet Growing Demand
Fetcha Chocolates is investing in new equipment to quadruple its capacity, increase turnover and create employment.   An Argyll based chocolate manufacturer is investing in new equipment to quadruple its capacity, increase turnover and create employment.  
Young Business Capital GrantThumbnail for article : Young Business Capital Grant
Is your young business ready for the next step?.   The Young Business Capital Grant helps young businesses and social enterprises (under 5 years old) invest in projects that stimulate growth.  
Shell-volution: £4.4m Islands Growth Deal To Boost Scotland's Mussel Farming SectorThumbnail for article : Shell-volution: £4.4m Islands Growth Deal To Boost Scotland's Mussel Farming Sector
Shell-volution is an ambitious industry-wide initiative supported by the public sector and the University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) which has been awarded £4.4 million of investment from the UK Government as part of the Islands Growth Deal.   This innovative, ground-breaking project is set to transform shellfish aquaculture, bringing sustainable growth and additional quality jobs in mussel farming, based on detailed investigations (mapping and monitoring) and creating a model for improving security and reliability of wild spat recruitment, through industry best practice.  
Nairn Bronze Foundry Expands Business And Creates Jobs
A Nairn-based foundry, which has achieved international recognition for its larger-than-life bronze castings has invested in a £200,000 expansion to help it reach greater heights.   An award of £60,000 from Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) has helped Black Isle Bronze to improve infrastructure and purchase equipment to extend the range of projects the firm can undertake.