TWO SNP politicians are hoping the £330 million takeover of Britain’s last remaining aluminium smelter at Fort William could trigger a “reindustrialisation” of the Highlands.
Ian Blackford, MP for Ross, Skye and Lochaber, and Kate Forbes, MSP for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch, said plans to create up to 600 jobs and invest £120m would “act as a catalyst for further investment and development in the region”.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and Rural Economy Secretary Fergus Ewing visited the Lochaber plant yesterday to celebrate the Scottish Government-backed sale of the smelter in Lochaber and hydro-power plants at Fort William and Kinlochleven.
The deal – by GFG Alliance companies Liberty House and SIMEC, and British-Australian mining firm Rio Tinto – will see the British Aluminium name reborn as Liberty British Aluminium. Sturgeon hailed it as a historic day for the UK’s only remaining aluminium smelter, calling it “the start of an exciting new chapter in Scotland’s manufacturing story”.
Blackford said Liberty House and SIMEC were ambitious and keen to get involved in investing in a greener future that could support a number of industries in the Highlands.
He said: “Their ambitions don’t end with aluminium production. They are also talking about steel production and steel production from waste. So, in other words, they are looking into the decommissioning of oil rigs as well.
“We are really talking about an entire supply chain and obviously they would be looking to break rigs up at ports off the west coast of Scotland. You can just imagine the opportunities at Kishorn, for example, if you could bring oil rigs in there to be broken up.
“The material could then be transported by sea from Kishorn down to Corpach and into a plant here, so you would have an integrated operation.
“That is really what I mean about industrialisation. It is important what they have done today, but it has to be seen as part of a wider and bigger strategy to make sure we can actually bring industry back in a meaningful way into the West Highlands.”
Blackford is confident it will happen because of the support from the Chamber of Commerce and local businesses.
“I think this will work,” he added. “It will take time, but there is a real story here. It is about making sure that the Highlands is a place to live and work, not just a tourist destination and for people to retire to.
“It is a place where families can grow up and you have seen what is happening to the University of the Highlands and Islands. For the fist time there are realistic prospects of young people staying here and developing careers here. I am very optimistic about the Highlands and this is an important part of the jigsaw.”
Forbes said the sale of the Lochaber smelter showed the SNP government’s commitment to the West Highlands.
“Now that the sale has been finalised, I hope we can all see the great potential for the smelter and Lochaber in the new owner’s plans,” she said.
“I hope that this sale will be a catalyst for investment and development in Lochaber – to see houses built, roads upgraded and railways improved.”
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