The Prestwick Proposition: investing for growth

Prestwick Aerospace is one of three main aerospace hubs in the UK, and has the potential to become the location of the first spaceport in western Europe. This report sets out the case for investment and presents six inter-connected projects that form the Prestwick Proposition, with an estimated total investment of £121.5 million funded through a mix of public and private investment. The six investment projects include: spaceport infrastructure; national aerospace and space supply chain centre; rail station upgrade; roads infrastructure; speculative build; and low cost energy infrastructure.

The Prestwick Proposition has been developed in consultation with the sector.

The report finds that while the value of the global market opportunity over the next 20 years is estimated at $5.7 trillion, the UK aerospace sector is not keeping pace with global growth. The sector is undergoing a significant shift in materials, with a move towards much higher composite materials content. New supply chain arrangements will be required to support this change that will have a lifespan of between 10 and 15 years. The report argues that there is a sizeable opportunity for the Scottish supply chain. The Prestwick Proposition is estimated to create 4,000 direct and supply chain jobs, plus a further 2,000 jobs in the tourism sector. Exploiting the investment proposals will enable significant growth in Scotland’s aerospace sector and the creation of a globally recognised space cluster. The UK is targeting 10% of the global space market by 2030, over 100,000 employees and £40bn turnover. Currently the cost to access space is having a negative impact on the development of the UK satellite industry. Spaceport development at Prestwick could be a key enabler in reducing cost of access to space and achieving the growth forecast. Building on the vast knowledge and experience of the existing aerospace cluster, Prestwick will help to maximise the economic benefit of space sector development to the UK and Scotland.

No specific recommendations were made.