Eyemouth boat yard eyes up a £2m investment

It plans to enclose the work sheds at the top of the slipways, invest in a new workshop, office space and a viewing platform for visitors to see the workings of a boat yard.

The company hopes to submit plans to Scottish Borders Council in the autumn for the redevelopment, which aims to attract a larger client base by offering a ‘controlled environment’ under cover for boats up to 15m airdraft and installing a boat handling system.

Owner Patrick Flockhart believes the key to turning around the fortunes of the previously troubled boat yard has been a focus on ‘serving sea, wind and shore’, taking the skills and craftsmanship needed to serve the marine sector and opening it up to the whole community.

“We like to think of ourselves as a ‘garage for the sea’,” said Patrick. “We are focusing our efforts on repairs and refits and using our marine skills to serve on-shore industry too.

“Eyemouth needs a boat yard. With no repair facility at Eyemouth, skippers would need to steam to Arbroath or Whitby for repairs out of the water. There is still a sizeable fishing fleet in range of the Berwickshire coast, not to mention the economic opportunities if Eyemouth Harbour is successful in winning the contract to be the support hub for the Neart na Gaoithe offshore wind farm.

“This is why we are planning to invest over £2million to redevelop the boatyard so that it can cater for all of the needs of the marine sector in and beyond Berwickshire for years to come. We will invest in both plant and people to generate sustainable, highly skilled jobs in Eyemouth.”

A company spokesman added: “The new company has a vision to build on its heritage to become a 21st century business. Of course, it is not just down to having the right equipment – you need great people and that’s what we’ve got here.”

“Patrick invested in our future and we have all signed up to a team charter of how we all want to work together.”