Record wind turbine load blows in at Cromarty port

Port of Cromarty Firth has handled its largest ever delivery of wind turbine components, for a scheme in Ross-shire.

Unloading the turbine towers at Port of Cromarty Firth. Picture: Contributed

Seventeen towers from China, each made up of three separate sections, were offloaded over three days. Each section weighs up to 67 tonnes.

The tower components are being stored at the port, alongside 51 turbine blades from Turkey, before heavy lifting specialist Collett & Sons delivers them to the Corriemoillie wind farm in Garve next month.

The port recently invested more than £24 million at its Invergordon service base – in a move that saw it reclaim nine acres of seabed and build a new deepwater quay – as it seeks to attract a wider range of customers.

Chief executive Bob Buskie said: “We are delighted to see more wind farm components arriving into the port. The towers were transported in a single shipment from China and there are very few ports in Scotland that could accommodate such a large vessel.

“Our success in this project highlights the capabilities of the supply companies based in Invergordon and their ability to jointly co-ordinate large projects. This is exactly the type of new business opportunity we wanted to attract when we invested in the development of the port and opened up the service base to companies willing to collaborate on large projects in the Cromarty Firth.”