Babcock's Rosyth port plans bring hopes for jobs
Babcock is to submit plans to Fife Council to create an international container port at Rosyth dockyard.
- By Lars Niven and Leeza Clark
- Published in the Courier : 13.05.10
- Published online : 13.05.10 @ 12.34pm
The company wants to convert the dock that was built to refit the UK's fleet of Trident nuclear submarines but was never used.
Rosyth infamously lost the £5 billion contract to refit the Trident fleet to its arch English rival Devonport in 1993.
Now, however, it seems the RD 57 facility, as it is known, could get a new lease of life as a major hub for container traffic.
Babcock — which bought the dockyard for about £20 million from the Ministry of Defence (MoD) in 1997 — is remaining tight-lipped about its plans but The Courier has learned it intends to lodge a planning application with the council in the near future.
Local councillor Douglas Chapman said the vast project, and the supercarriers contract work for the MoD at Rosyth dockyard, would bring an era of prosperity to the west Fife economy.
The proposal for a container terminal at Rosyth was one of several projects outlined by Scottish finance secretary John Swinney two years ago as part of a planning blueprint.
That document set out a vision of Scotland for 2030 and listed major projects identified by the government as of vital national importance. The list included the planned new road bridge over the Forth.
"Clearly a lot of the detail has still to be worked out but this also opens the door to how we deal with traffic levels in and around Rosyth and helps with the SNP campaign to get a direct link rail service into the port of Rosyth," Mr Chapman said.
Exciting projects
"At a time when people are concerned about jobs and what lies ahead for the economy, news like this gives us all hope for the future — but we need to keep working at making sure these exciting projects are delivered and fulfil their undoubted job-creating potential.
"This is part of the SNP Scottish Government's strategic infrastructure plan for Scotland and, along with the new Forth bridge, I am delighted that two of the seven major building projects in Scotland are located here in Rosyth."
John Park, Labour MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife and a former trade union leader at the dockyard, also welcomed the development.
"I've been shown the outline plans that they have," he told The Courier. "Over the next 10 to 15 years there is going to be a very large increase in the amount of freight being moved by sea.
"The RD 57 site has had no work done on it since 1993 and it's costing Babcock a lot of money to keep it from falling into a state of disrepair.
"I think for Babcock to do something constructive with that site is a positive thing."
Mr Park said that under the proposal ships would actually come into the dockyard and come alongside a jetty before loading or unloading their cargo.
A spokeswoman for Babcock said, "The company does not want to make any comment just now with regard to the planning application or the procedures involved."
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