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Arcola to create 135 jobs at new manufacturing base
Hydrogen technology company Arcola Energy will bring up to 135 jobs to the former Michelin site in Dundee over a three-year period, after securing a £1.5m grant from Scottish Enterprise.
The firm, which specialises in fuel cell technology integration, will be one of the first tenants at the Michelin Scotland Innovation Parc (MSIP) – a joint venture between Dundee City Council, Michelin and Scottish Enterprise on the former tyre factory site, which aims to become a world-leading sustainable transport hub.
The Regional Selective Assistance grant will allow Arcola to progress plans to create a new engineering and manufacturing facility at MSIP in the months ahead. The first phase will bring in around 20 employees to support the Arcola-led Scottish hydrogen train project and product development for hydrogen-powered vehicles, with the remainder being recruited over the next three years as Arcola expands production at the site.
Arcola also has a rail engineering facility at the Bo’ness and Kinneil Railway and plans for a service centre in Glasgow.
Arcola Energy is to create 135 jobs at a new manufacturing base at the former Michelin plant in Dundee / Picture: MSIP/Scottish Enterprise
Arcola chief executive officer, Dr Ben Todd, said: “We were attracted by MSIP’s ambition to become a leading hub supporting the decarbonisation of Scotland’s transport system and infrastructure, and in particular by the hydrogen production and fuelling facility that MSIP is building to support development and deployment of zero-emission vehicles.
“This new facility will be Arcola’s main manufacturing base, supporting our growing business needs as we expand our range of heavy-duty fuel cell vehicles.”
The company’s new Dundee facility will support their work in adapting heavy-duty vehicles and transport applications to zero-emission, hydrogen-powered solutions, supporting Scotland’s ambitions for a net zero carbon emissions economy.
Andy McDonald, head of low carbon transition at Scottish Enterprise, added: “This announcement is obviously great news for the company and the people of Dundee, but also in terms of the growth of our sustainable mobility sector. The creation of MSIP has been a huge step in supporting the growth of this sector and Arcola will be a really exciting addition to the facility, as well as a real boost to the efforts towards establishing Scotland as a world leader in sustainable mobility.”
Fiona Hyslop, economy secretary, said: “The Michelin Scotland Innovation Parc vision is to be a world class centre of sustainable mobility and low carbon energy. We want Scotland to lead the way in developing and manufacturing the technologies of the future and MSIP will be vital in helping us achieve this. This announcement is another positive step forward for MSIP and Dundee as a hub for the green jobs that will be vital to our post-pandemic recovery.”