Port of Nigg visit by UK ambassador aims to bolster multibillion-pound trade with Japan
THE expansion of multibillion-pound business links between Scotland and Japan came under the spotlight at an Easter Ross port that recently changed hands.
The visit to Port of Nigg by the UK’s Ambassador to Japan, Julia Longbottom, kicked off a four-day ‘domestic roadshow’ that aims to encourage further growth in links which include massive whisky export sales to the Far East.
Longbottom was dispatched by Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper to build connections with businesses and boost investment and trade with Japan.
It’s part of an initiative that will see Ambassadors and High Commissioners sent around the country to meet with businesses in order to support them to expand into key growth-driving markets.
As we reported in July, one of the Highlands’ key private employers, Global Energy Group (GEG), reached an agreement on the sale of three of its companies — including the Port of Nigg — to long-term investor, Mitsui & Co. Europe Ltd (Mitsui), a subsidiary of Mitsui & Co., Ltd, together with Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd (MOL).
Another Japanese company, Sumitomo Electric UK Power Cables Ltd, is building a multi-million pound factory right next to the port which will make high-voltage electric cabling for use in the likes of offshore and onshore wind farms.
This week’s visit will build on an already thriving trading relationship with Japan, which is worth over £30 billion and supports thousands of jobs across Scotland.
Minister for the Indo-Pacific, Seema Malhotra, said: “Our Ambassadors and High Commissioners are playing a crucial role in ensuring that every part of the UK benefits from global opportunities—bringing international investment into our towns and cities and helping local economies thrive.
“This roadshow visit marks an important step in strengthening our trade and investment ties with Japan.It’s about creating good jobs, supporting local businesses, and delivering real opportunities for communities across the country including in Scotland.”
Ambassador Longbottom kicked off her week-long tour of Scotland yesterday at the Port of Nigg, on the Cromarty Firth, which is one of Scotland’s two green freeports. She met Sumitomo Electric, whose £350 million subsea cable factory will create 150 jobs and strengthen the UK’s renewable energy supply chain, and with Mitsui, the Tokyo-based site owner and recent investor.
The visit will also took in Aberdeen’s Energy Transition Zone, where she witnessed Scotland’s offshore wind and hydrogen expertise and discuss new Japanese investment opportunities in Scottish renewables infrastructure.
Today she will visit Arbikie Distillery near Dundee to discuss strategies to grow exports to Japan, where demand for Scotch whisky reached £170 million in 2023. Her visit to the city’s 4J Studios will centre on unlocking opportunities for Scottish video game developers in Japan’s £15 billion gaming market, the third largest globally. 4J is best known for developing the world-famous Minecraft Console Edition.
She will also visit the UK’s £750m national supercomputer site at University of Edinburgh and the National Robotarium – a ground-breaking robotics and AI research hub supported with £300m funding from the UK Government and £300m funding from the Scottish Government.
Ambassador Longbottom said: “It’s exciting to be in Scotland – developing the relationships that will supercharge growth in every corner of the UK.
“The UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy and Trade Strategy are making Britain the best country to do business with – and that is the message I’m giving, loud and clear, to businesses in Japan.
“Japanese companies are choosing to invest and create jobs in the UK because of our skilled workforce, our world-class innovation, and our deep, trusted partnership with Japan. Scotland has all of these, and it’s my job to put Scotland on the map in Japan.
“That’s why I’m in Scotland this week – exploring new opportunities both forlocal companies seeking to export to Japan and to explore how Japanese companies can invest and create more jobs and growth here.”
Over a dozen visits have taken place to date across England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, helping to build international connections for local businesses.
Background briefing
Japan is now the UK’s 14th largest trading partner, according to the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
It says Ambassador Longbottom will use this week’s roadshow visit to build on figures which show total trade between UK and Japan is over £30.6 billion – with many companies across Scotland benefiting.
In 2024 total goods exports from Scotland to Japan were worth £484m. Scotland’s top export to Japan was beverages, including whisky, with sales worth £158 million - 32.5 per cent of all goods exported.
In 2024 there were 120 Japanese owned businesses in Scotland, operating 265 local business units, and employing 8980 workers.