Inverness and Cromarty Firth Green Freeport (ICFGF) has appointed Calum MacPherson as its chief executive.
Born in Inverness, finishing his schooling at the city’s Charleston Academy before studying law at Aberdeen University, he then worked in a tax practise in Aberdeen, focused primarily on the oil and gas sector.
MacPherson returned to the Highlands in 1999 and worked for 12 years at Highlands and Islands Enterprise, latterly as head of operations and then finally as area manager for Moray.
In 2010, he was appointed joint chair of the Moray Task Force, which promoted the case for retention of defence jobs in the region and helped support local communities.
The following year, MacPherson joined Robertson Group, moving recently to a UK-wide role leading the Robertson Capital Project business.
He will take up the new role in August and commented: “This is a fantastic opportunity to lead an organisation that will play a central role in creating exciting careers for people across the Highlands and further afield, attracting large-scale international investment and playing a central role in delivering net zero.
“As a region, we need to do all we can to capitalise on this window of opportunity and by close working with consortium partners and stakeholders I’m confident we’ll be in a strong position to secure investment and new high-quality jobs.”
ICFGF chair Jim Smith added: “As you would expect, the recruitment for a chief executive was an extensive selection process - we needed someone with the skillset and background to be able to hit the ground running.
“We are delighted to have attracted an individual of the calibre and experience that Calum brings.
“His knowledge will be a significant advantage allowing the Inverness and Cromarty Firth Green Freeport to deliver on the ambitions outlined in our bid on job creation, inward investment and decarbonisation.”
ICFGF is a company limited by guarantee and was born out of Opportunity Cromarty Firth, the consortium which led the successful bid to become a freeport.
It is backed by port owners Port of Cromarty Firth, Global Energy Group and Port of Inverness, alongside The Highland Council, University of the Highlands and Islands and more than 30 regional, national and international businesses, public sector organisations and academic bodies.
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