Hunterston development signals industrial shift on Scotland’s West Coast

JLL in Scotland has been appointed to market a new multimodal centre for manufacturing, processing, logistics and energy which includes the deepest port on the UK’s west coast.

Hunterston Port and Resource Centre (PARC) combines the Hunterston Bulk Terminal, a functioning port facility currently handling coal and other resources; the Hunterston Marine Yard with one of the largest dry docks in the country; two rail terminals: and over 300 acres of development land.

Located on the Firth of Clyde in Ayrshire, 40 miles west of Glasgow, the site is owned by Peel Ports Group, one of the largest port groups in the UK owning and operating six of the UK’s most important ports as well as a container terminal in Dublin.

Peel Ports Group is developing Hunterston PARC to support the Scottish Government’s ‘Circular Economy’ strategy, with the co-location of material management, asset decommissioning and recycling, pre-fabrication and manufacturing, data storage, and power generation all on a single site alongside industrial research activities.

The site is expected to attract significant interest from the energy sector, with infrastructure suited for power generation, storage and exportation. Hunterston PARC is equipped to handle and process chemicals including liquefied natural gas which is increasingly powering Scottish industry and transport.

With direct sea links to the Irish Sea, as well as Peel Ports’ newly opened £400m deep-water container terminal, Liverpool2, the site has obvious deep-water links for global export and import trade.

Hunterston PARC also benefits from multi-modal connectivity with low cost rail and road options linking the site with central Scotland and beyond.

Hunterston has a longstanding history in Scotland’s oil and gas industry having been used to complete the concrete gravity sub-structure for BP’s Harding Field and the gravity platform for the Maureen Field. The site’s 100 acre Marine Yard has been earmarked as a suitable site for the future decommissioning of oil & gas structures as well as the construction of assets for the renewable energy sector.

Andrew McCracken, Director at JLL in Scotland said: “We’re delighted to bring Hunterston PARC to the market. This unique multi-modal centre for exporting, importing, processing, recycling and distributing resources will be significant in supporting economic growth in Scotland, the rest of the UK and Europe. We expect the site to attract significant attention from prospective manufacturers, power generators and recyclers, as well as importers and exporters looking to tap into low cost, onsite power. As we see a global shift towards new forms of energy production and processing, Hunterston is a site which, due to its existing infrastructure and prime geographical location has a key role to play in the future of the energy sector.”

Gary Hodgson, Strategic Projects Director, Peel Ports Group said: “As the west coast’s deepest port, Hunterston PARC combines excellent rail and motorway connections and has in excess of 300 acres of development land, making this a natural choice for handling and processing Scotland’s industrial resources. Our continued focus is supporting the development of integrated supply chains through port centric logistics and the developments underway at Hunterston PARC are a perfect example of how we’re doing this.”