The Port of Cromarty Firth has announced a new quayside expansion that will cost £30 million and could generate over 140 new jobs.

This follows a recent announcement of a £10 million contract from Moray East Offshore Windfarm to become the intermediate port for its 95 turbines and other items.

The new 218m quayside (with a nine-acre laydown area) has been designed as a new energy and cruise hub; it will be completed by 2020.

It will be able to accommodate large-scale renewable-energy projects (along with decommissioning and oil and gas projects), plus the largest cruise ships currently being designed and built.

This will be the second quayside and laydown area built by the Port in three years. In 2015/16, it invested £25 million in a new 150m quayside (also with a nine-acre laydown area), which contributed to its most successful year — 2017.

Bob Buskie, chief executive of the Port of Cromarty Firth (www.pocf.co.uk), said: “This is tremendous news for the Port and the Highlands, and it represents a significant investment by the board.

As a Trust Port, all of our profits are reinvested in the Port’s future development. We believe this investment will bring new work to the area for decades to come.

“There is a substantial demand for the services in the Port and, even with the large new quayside and laydown area finished in 2016, we still experience capacity issues.

“This new Energy and Cruise Hub will help us resolve these problems and open up the Port to being able to accommodate large-scale projects from across all sectors.”