Up to 460 new biotech jobs are expected to be created in Grangemouth as part of an £8.5 million support package announced by the Scottish Government, following the closure of Scotland’s only crude oil refinery earlier this year.

Edinburgh-based biotechnology firm MiAlgae has been awarded £1.5 million, a figure to be match-funded by the UK Government, with the company already breaking ground on a major new scale-up facility, expected to go live in early 2026.

The work could see 310 new jobs created over the next five years as the biotech looks to increase its output more than tenfold to meet rapidly rising demand for high-quality, fish-free Omega 3 oils in the global pet-food industry.

Meanwhile, green-chemical producer Celtic Renewables has secured £6.23 million in public investment to construct its own biorefinery at Grangemouth, with the facility expected to support 149 new jobs by 2030, including highly skilled science, tech and manufacturing roles.

Celtic currently operates a demonstrator biorefinery at its Grangemouth site, producing green chemicals such as bio-acetone and bio-ethanol from locally sourced feedstocks like pot ale from whisky distillation and rejected potatoes.

“Seeing MiAlgae break ground on its first commercial-scale plant, as well as announcing the latest stage in Celtic Renewables’ growth journey, are causes to celebrate,” said Jan Robertson, director of Grangemouth Transition at Scottish Enterprise.

“Grangemouth is the perfect location for innovative Scottish scale-ups to grow, creating high-quality jobs and supply chain opportunities for the whole community.”

The plans will go some way to bolstering the local economy after Grangemouth’s century-long oil era ended in April, resulting in the loss of roughly 400 jobs.

The closure of the Grangemouth oil refinery by owner Petroineos, a joint venture by Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s INEOS and Chinese state-owned PetroChina, drew strong criticism from the likes of the Unite union and the Scottish Government.

In February, first minster John Swinney told Holyrood that the SNP believed “refining at Grangemouth should continue, that this closure is premature, and that it is detrimental to Scotland’s transition to net zero”, spurring the creation of a Grangemouth Just Transition Fund, backed by £225 million in joint UK and Scottish government funding.

Biotechnology initiatives were quickly identified as one of the key investment prospects for the site’s future, with MiAlgae and Celtic Renewables among the first firms to benefit from the Scottish Government’s “alternative pathways” for the industrial cluster.

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As part of efforts to secure Grangemouth’s long-term future, the Scottish Government has also provided £600,000 to Scottish Enterprise to support planning and infrastructure work and maintain the site’s attractiveness to investors.

“Today’s announcement will help to support the creation of up to 460 roles directly and across the supply chain in Scotland, and help to highlight the wide range of viable alternatives for Grangemouth,” said Scottish energy secretary Gillian Martin.

“They demonstrate that a long-term, new industrial future at Grangemouth is achievable, and will be vital to support the local workforce and community.”