Cabinet Secretary given assurances over community partnership working. Left to right: Chief Superintendent, Julian Innes, Police Scotland (Highlands & Islands Division); Dr Ken Oates, Consultant, NHS Highland; Alistair Dodds, Chief Executive, The Highland Council; Jonathan Hart, Highlands & Islands Strategic Co-ordinating Group; Drew Hendry, Leader, The Highland Council; Kenny MacAskill, Cabinet Secretary for Justice; Scott Hay, Scottish Fire & Rescue Service (Highlands & Islands Area Manager).
Wick Harbour Authority's ambitious plans to attract new jobs to the area from the offshore wind industry have received a boost with the combined support of £450,000 from two partners in the Caithness & North Sutherland Regeneration Partnership (CNSRP). The Harbour Authority is positioning the port to attract business from the two large offshore wind developments in the Moray Firth, and is currently working on a multi-phase programme to ensure that its facilities meet the requirements of industry.
Energy/ Business Services: Arise UK have been running information sessions in the area this week, to raise awareness of opportunities for people to carry out a range of business support functions for companies in a range of sectors (financial services, hospitality, retail etc) whilst based in their own homes. A number of people attended the events in Thurso, Wick and Brora.
DSRL is committed to the socioeconomic development of the Caithness and Sutherland area, and in particular to improving the employment prospects and “job-readiness” of local school leavers. As part of this commitment, we have contributed to the development of an innovative, industry-led event to provide young people with the practical skills and information required to support their success in moving into employment in all sectors.
Crucial milestones were achieved in the clean-up of the UK's nuclear legacy last year, the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) has revealed in its annual report and accounts. Progress was generally good across the NDA's 19 licensed sites, with achievements during 2012/13 including:.
Three lead baths weighing between twenty-one and twenty-eight tonnes each have been hoisted out of the redundant Dounreay Fast Reactor. Stripping out the old lead baths has been a challenging legacy faced by both the DFR project team and Dounreay’s waste directorate as decommissioning the fifty year old plant progresses.
The Caithness & North Sutherland Fund recently held its 6th grant assessment round awarding £118K to seven community and voluntary groups for projects that will benefit people living in the Caithness & North Sutherland area. This latest round of awards brings the Fund’s total funding commitment to over £648K, of which forty seven voluntary and community groups have benefited.
Energy/ Business Services: The Highland Council’s North Planning Applications Committee will next week consider a report on the Beatrice Offshore Windfarm Ltd’s application to Marine Scotland to build at a site in the Moray Firth. Members of the committee will be asked to endorse the recommendation that the Council raises no objection to the development, subject to a number of conditions, including one ensuring that the developer continues dialogue with supply chain and ports, specifically mentioning Wick harbour as a potential operation and maintenance base.
The world’s deepest nuclear clean-up job has been given the green light by the planning authorities. A processing agreement has been made between the Highland Council and Dounreay, with planning permission in principle granted to Dounreay for the construction of plants to remotely retrieve, package and store the intermediate level waste from the shaft and silo.
Week commencing 6th June 2013 Energy/ Business Services: Beatrice Offshore Windfarm Ltd, the partnership behind the planned offshore windfarm in the Moray Firth near the coast of Caithness and East Sutherland, has added some further data to its application to Marine Scotland for consent to build its development. If consented this could see up to 277 turbines sites in the Moray Firth, the closest of which would be around 8 miles from Wick.
There are now just a few days remaining to book a place at our Networking and Meet the Buyer events, held in partnership with SSE. These events are a great way to make contacts with and hear all the latest information from SSE Procurement, SSE Transmission, SSE Renewables, Achilles and SSE's Tier 1 contractors.
This is a short message to update you on activities relating to the Caithness & North Sutherland Regeneration Partnership. Energy/ Business Services: As reported last week I worked with partners from Highland Council, HIE, Energy North and Caithness Chamber to arrange a visit from representatives from National Grid.
Week Commencing 13th May 2013 Energy/ Business Services: I met this week with colleagues from HIE, Highland Council, Environmental Research Institute, Dounreay Site Restoration Ltd and business representatives to discuss the evolving concept of an “International Marine Energy Delivery (IMED)” campus in Caithness. It was clear from the meeting that there is a considerable amount of work currently being undertaken in the north that is ready for wider international attention, including the academic work being taken forward by the ERI and European partners, and the international work being undertaken by area businesses.
Week Commencing 6 May 2013 Energy/ Business Services: Ignis Wick Ltd, the company behind the combined heat and power scheme in Wick, have announced a further expansion of the district heating system with the connection later this month of the Wick Assembly Rooms. This will allow the north’s largest public performance venue to be heated entirely from renewable energy, enabling its oil-fired boiler to be switched off.
Police issue warning to disqualified drivers. The Highland and Islands Division continue to receive information and intelligence about drivers who drive illegally when they have been disqualified or do not hold an appropriate licence.
Energy/ Business Services: As we continue to see positive interest in Caithness from the energy sector, I met this week with representatives from Highlands & Islands Airports Ltd, HIE and Dounreay Site Restoration Ltd to discuss feedback from recent contact and to agree the key messages we will continue to take to companies in the sector about the value of doing business in the north. Enabling Activities: Continuing work on developing our activities in support of skills this week: I met with local partners to discuss how we might best help people to understand and take advantage of some forthcoming opportunities in the “home-working” sector, where doing a range of skilled work from a home base can be an attractive option.
Police are appealing for information following reports of entry forced to an out building in the Caithness area. The incident took place in Spittal between 20:30 hours on Saturday 27th April 2013 and 19:00 hours on Sunday 28ths April 2013.
Caithness Chamber Of Commerce recently held a marketing business breakfast, sponsored by Navertech. The event was extremely well attended and highly informative.
POLICE are appealing for information from the public to assist them target those responsbile for rural thefts across the Highland area as part of OPERATION ENGAGE. Within the last few weeks, Police have noted an increase in the number of thefts in the more rural areas of the Highlands.
Week commencing 22 April 2013 Energy/ Business Services: Scrabster Harbour Trust has this week announced an agreement with NorSea Group, a major Norwegian oil & gas services company, that is expected will lead to major investment and new job prospects for the local economy. NorSea operates nine supply bases along the coast of Norway, but this will be its first Scottish base.