Bringing new energy to local economy in southern Scotland
An initial investment £1.2 million from the NDA helped to secure additional match funding from a range of sources, reaching £9 million in total and providing support for the economy of the southern Scottish belt that includes the towns of Annan, Lockerbie and Gretna.
Alpha Solway Welder
CX Project Phase I
| Nearest NDA site | Duration | Total investment | NDA contribution | Partners | Delivered by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chapelcross | 2011 to 2017 onwards | £9 million | £1.2 million | NDA, Dumfries and Galloway Council, Magnox, Princes Trust Youth Business Scotland, Business Gateway, Scottish Enterprise | Dumfries and Galloway Council |
Aim
To provide support for the economy of the southern Scottish belt that includes the towns of Annan, Lockerbie and Gretna.
Outcomes:
- Growth Business Grants for 32 businesses, resulting in:
- 107 new jobs
- £5.7 million increase in turnover
- start-up grants for Young Entrepreneur businesses
- support for developing Lockerbie Masterplan, resulting in:
- £1.3 million of town centre improvements
- Support for Gretna Masterplan, resulting in:
- £1.1 million of town improvements.
- support for Annan Masterplan, resulting in:
- town entrance improvements totaling almost £500,000
- Chapelcross Project Phase II focused on:
- developing new employment opportunities on land around the decommissioning site, including potential renewable energy and industrial uses
Grant funding enabled a diverse range of local businesses to grow and expand, while start-up support, focused particularly on young entrepreneurs, led to the creation of new businesses. More than 100 new jobs were created and turnover in supported businesses increased by almost £6 million.
Further support for plans to rejuvenate the public areas of local towns and the approaches into them has helped to breathe new life into the area’s urban centres.
Dumfries & Galloway Council is now working with its partners, the NDA, Scottish Enterprise and the Scottish Government, on the second phase of the CX Project to realise an ambitious vision for the Chapelcross site itself and the surrounding land.
The council’s aim is to develop opportunities around energy production and industry-related uses, drawing in inward investment from across the region and further afield, while making the site attractive for low-carbon energy innovators and academic research institutions.
With more than 100 hectares of land already available, the project will be one of only a handful of sites this size across Scotland and northern England.
Benefits of the site include direct access to the grid transmission network and a pipeline to the Solway Firth that could support tidal power projects.
Based on a simplified approach to planning, potential investors will have confidence that the authorities are supportive of initiatives that create jobs and economic activity.
Around 12 development zones have already been identified in a zoning exercise, with more than half the space dedicated initially to low-carbon energy usage.
Talks with the Department for International Trade, meanwhile, are under way for the site to feature in a forthcoming programme to promote Scotland on the world stage.
The Scottish Government’s low Carbon infrastructure Transition programme has agreed that Chapelcross offers potential to be a ‘demonstrator site’ for mixed low-carbon energy production, storage and R&D.