The head of one of Scotland’s most closely watched energy transition projects is stepping down, marking a leadership change at a strategic North Sea renewables hub.

Inverness and Cromarty Firth Green Freeport confirmed that chief executive Calum Macpherson will leave his role after helping set up and shape the project since its early phase.

The freeport, based in the Highlands, has been positioned as a key industrial gateway for offshore wind, floating wind technology and wider energy transition supply chains. It brings together port infrastructure, fabrication capability and logistics space aimed at supporting deployment and maintenance activity in the North Sea.

Macpherson was appointed as the project’s first CEO in 2023, tasked with turning the green freeport concept into an operational structure and attracting early investment interest from developers, ports and supply chain players.

At the time of his appointment, the focus was on building the framework rather than delivery at scale — setting up governance, defining investment zones and aligning stakeholders across public and private sectors.

Since then, the project has moved into a more active development phase, with ports in the Cromarty Firth area increasingly linked to offshore wind assembly, marshalling and servicing work as Scotland builds out its role in floating wind.

Macpherson’s departure comes as the freeport moves from establishment into execution, with infrastructure plans advancing and industrial partners beginning to take positions on long-term development.

Local and industry coverage noted that the timing reflects a natural transition point — from setup phase leadership to a more delivery-focused structure as investment pipelines mature.

The freeport programme in the Highlands is seen as one of Scotland’s flagship attempts to capture offshore wind supply chain activity, particularly as developers look for laydown space, quayside access and heavy-lift capability close to project areas in the Moray Firth and wider North Sea basin.

A replacement process is expected to follow, with the organisation likely to look for a leader with experience in infrastructure delivery and energy project execution as the focus shifts further toward construction and operations rather than planning.

For the Highlands project, the change in leadership marks the end of the set-up phase — and the start of a more commercially driven period where early plans are expected to turn into steel on the ground and activity on the quays.