Scotland's offshore wind sector just got a lot more concrete. Danish energy company Vestas has announced plans to build a nacelle and hub manufacturing facility at Leith, Edinburgh — a £199 million investment that will create around 500 jobs. It's a national story, but for workers in Fife, it's worth paying close attention.
Leith is roughly 40 minutes by train from Kirkcaldy. The Berwick Bank offshore wind farm — one of the largest proposed wind projects in the world — sits off the east coast of Scotland, directly in Fife's back garden. This isn't a distant industry. It's coming to your doorstep.
What Vestas Is Building and Why It Matters
The Leith facility will manufacture nacelles and hubs — the components that sit at the top of a wind turbine and house the generator. These are large, technically complex parts that until now have mostly been made overseas and shipped to UK wind farm sites.
The decision to build in Scotland is tied to the UK government's AR7 offshore wind auction, which in January 2026 secured 8.4 gigawatts of new capacity — including projects off the Scottish coast. Developers bidding into these auctions have commitments around UK content and supply chain investment. That's what's driving factories like this one to Scottish shores.
For workers, this means manufacturing jobs, logistics roles, engineering positions, and a wide support chain of suppliers and contractors — all of which need people.
Berwick Bank: The Fife Connection
Berwick Bank is the offshore wind project closest to Fife. Proposed by Ocean Winds (a joint venture between EDP Renewables and Engie), it would sit off the East Lothian and Fife coastline and at peak proposals was designed to generate up to 4.1 gigawatts — enough to power around 4 million homes.
The project has faced a long planning process, but Scotland's commitment to offshore wind and the AR7 auction results suggest the sector is moving forward with or without any single project. Where Berwick Bank goes, other east coast projects will follow.
The practical point for Fife workers: offshore wind farms need onshore infrastructure, maintenance bases, logistics hubs, and supply chain operations. These don't all sit in Edinburgh. Ports, warehouses, and service facilities typically locate as close to the wind farm as practical — which could mean Fife.
What Jobs Are Available in Offshore Wind
The offshore wind sector isn't just for engineers. It employs a wide range of people across manufacturing, operations, and support. Some of the roles that come up most regularly:
Manufacturing and production — assembling turbine components, quality control, CNC operation, welding, electrical assembly. The Vestas factory will need experienced manufacturing workers as well as people willing to train into the sector.
Installation and marine operations — offshore technicians, vessel crew, lifting and rigging specialists. These roles often require specific offshore safety certifications (GWO — Global Wind Organisation) but are accessible with the right training.
Operations and maintenance (O&M) — once a wind farm is running, it needs a team of technicians performing regular maintenance, fault diagnosis, and emergency repairs. These are long-term, stable roles based in service hubs near the coast.
Engineering and project management — electrical, mechanical, and structural engineers are in high demand. So are project managers, health and safety leads, and environmental consultants.
Logistics, administration, and supply chain — every large project needs procurement, warehousing, transport coordination, HR, and finance. These roles don't require offshore experience and are often overlooked by people who assume wind energy is only for specialists.
Construction and engineering jobs in Fife and logistics roles are worth watching as the sector expands locally.
How to Position Yourself
You don't need to be in the industry already to get into it. The sector is actively trying to grow its workforce, and Skills Development Scotland has been running green energy upskilling programmes specifically to help workers transition from other industries — including oil and gas, construction, and manufacturing.
A few practical steps if you're interested:
Get your GWO Basic Safety Training. The Global Wind Organisation's BST certificate (covering working at heights, manual handling, fire awareness, first aid, and sea survival) is the entry-level requirement for most offshore and wind farm site roles. Several training providers offer it in Scotland.
Look at Fife College. The college runs engineering and technical courses relevant to the energy sector. If you're changing careers or want to formalise skills you already have, it's worth checking what's available — particularly shorter courses and SVQs.
Update your LinkedIn. The offshore wind sector recruits heavily through LinkedIn. A profile that's specific about your technical skills — even from other industries — will get more traction than a generic one. Our guide to using AI to write your CV covers how to translate existing experience into language that resonates with new sectors.
Watch the tier 2 supply chain. The Vestas factory is the headline, but the bigger opportunity is in the hundreds of smaller suppliers and contractors who will work around it. These companies hire engineers, drivers, administrators, and tradespeople — often at lower barriers to entry than the headline employer.
This Is a Long Game — But It Starts Now
Offshore wind jobs in Scotland won't all appear this year. The Vestas factory is subject to securing future orders. Berwick Bank is still working through planning. These are multi-year projects with long lead times.
But that's exactly why getting informed now matters. The workers who land the best roles in a new sector are rarely the ones who apply on day one of the job posting — they're the ones who've been building relevant skills and relationships for the preceding 12–18 months.
Fife has a manufacturing and industrial heritage that maps well onto what the offshore wind sector needs. The skills gap is real, and the industry knows it. That's an opportunity.
For a broader picture of how large-scale investment is reshaping the Fife economy, read our piece on Kirkcaldy's £20 million regeneration and what it means for local jobs.
Browse current jobs in Fife on Kirkcaldy Jobs — including construction, engineering, and logistics vacancies across the KY postcodes.