Chinese offshore wind manufacturer and vessel operator Dajin Heavy Industry has signed a memorandum of understanding with Scottish port developer Haventus to explore a ‘strategic partnership’ at Ardersier Port.
If it goes ahead, the move could potentially give the Chinese company a new logistics base in the North Sea.
Under the agreement, announced by Haventus on 24 August, the companies will examine opportunities across the UK and European offshore wind market, combining Dajin’s manufacturing and transport capabilities with Ardersier’s deep-water port infrastructure.
The proposed cooperation could cover the storage, marshalling, assembly and transportation of offshore wind components, according to the company announcement. Haventus says Ardersier’s facilities are intended to support both fixed-bottom and floating offshore wind projects.
Ardersier is placing itself as a prime site for offshore wind operations, and once infrastructure changes have been made it will have 1,500m of quayside length, a minimum water depth of three metres and maximum of 12.4 metres.
Works are due to be completed in 2028.
The agreement with Dajin comes against a backdrop of growing Chinese involvement – and scrutiny – in the UK’s offshore wind supply chain.
MingYang Wind Power, another major Chinese turbine manufacturer, has previously proposed investment in UK offshore wind manufacturing. UK government records show that ministers have held several meetings with MingYang to discuss its UK operations, investment and supply-chain development, including meetings as recently as January 2026.
The government’s latest UK Renewables Deployment Supply Chain Readiness Study says MingYang has announced potential factories across Europe, but notes that such projects are “subject to stringent legal and regulatory requirements and national security assessments.”
The Dajin-Haventus venture, on the other hand, is an MoU to explore opportunities, rather than a commitment to build a manufacturing plant or invest a specified amount at Ardersier.
It is also not the first step Dajin has made in the UK, having transported all of the monopiles to the Hornsea 3 wind farm, off the east English coast. It completed the transport in June this year.
For Ardersier, however, it potentially offers another route into the offshore wind supply chain after the port spent years positioning itself as a major manufacturing and assembly hub.
The UK government’s own supply-chain assessment says uncertainty in offshore wind has eased demand in the short term, while stressing the importance of supply-chain capacity as the industry expands.
