Scotch Whisky Investments (SWI) has toasted the opening of its new whisky storage and warehousing facility at Glenrothes which, it says, fills a recognised gap in the market for suitable Scotch storage by providing full-cask management services on site.
The £10m investment includes four whisky storage warehouses, maintenance and bottling buildings and offices and marks the first phase of longer-term development in the site at Southfield Industrial Estate by the international whisky asset management business.
The company earlier this year acquired a further 7.7 hectares of land at the Estate, marking one of the largest industrial land transactions in Fife in recent years. This will accommodate the delivery of a large-scale whisky storage facility, bottling plant, cooperage, and office complex, critical to the company’s investment plans.
Intending to expand to 27 warehouses, which could hold some 200,000 casks, it is anticipated that this further development will create up to 38 full-time jobs onsite. The company has received some £850,000 in grants from Scottish Enterprise and had support from Fife Council in order to deliver this expansion.
SWI also recently announced that it is set to relocate its headquarters, currently located in Sassenheim outside Amsterdam in the Netherlands, to the Fife village of Falkland. This includes proposals for a new iconic corporate headquarters building with hospitality, offices, some retail and a small number of cottages for investors, visitors and staff. It is also the intention of SWI to relocate one of the world’s largest whisky collections to its new home in Falkland once the new development is completed.
Keith Rennie, Manging Director for Scotch Whisky Investments, said, “We are delighted to open our new whisky storage facility here in Glenrothes and would welcome anyone requiring such facilities to come and speak with us.
“The facility, which will be our base in Scotland for many years to come, is a crucial part of our expansion plans globally, delivering a multi-million-pound package of investment in Fife and creating considerable employment opportunities.
“Our vision as a company is to showcase and educate people about single malt Scotch whisky and promote investment in the commodity. Our new state-of-the-art storage facility will help us achieve that goal.
“We would like to thank both Fife Council and Scottish Enterprise, who provided significant support and funding for the additional phases of this development.”
Picture: Keith Rennie, MD for SWI (on left) and Barry Anderson, Business Operations Manager