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Arnish yard hopes for new contract         25/7/10

There are no definite orders in the pipeline for the Arnish manufacturing yard on Lewis says its owners.

Some 60 people are employed at the Fife-owned BiFab facility, which reopened last year after a period of boom and bust.

But it is now coming towards the end of its contract to build components for the giant Ormonde offshore wind farm in the Irish Sea, off Cumbria.

Arnish has completed fabricating the transportation grillage, used to support 30 jacket sub-structures being made in its sister yard in Fife.

The company's Methil plant has shipped the first four 450 tonne, 45-metre high turbine bases for the 150 megawatt renewable energy scheme.

BiFab managing director John Robertson said the grillage had left Stornoway and have “all been delivered to Fife.”

He highlighted: “We are awaiting our next project. There is nothing definite yet.”

Presently, “Arnish is working on other components for the Ormonde field,” he said.