Forth Green Freeport, the public-private consortium set up to regenerate a huge swathe of east and central Scotland blighted by industrial decline, has unveiled its first chief executive.

The freeport has appointed economic development specialist Sarah Murray to the role shortly after it officially opened for business in June, when it secured approval of its outline business case from the Scottish and UK Governments. That gave it a special tax designation to incentivise companies involved in the energy transition and drive to net zero to establish bases in three sites covered by the freeport, Grangemouth, Rosyth, and Mid-Forth (Leith and Burntisland), and create jobs across an area spanning 550 hectares.

READ MORE: Glasgow animation firm goes bust, wiping out nearly all jobs

FGF said Ms Murray, who moves into post on August 27, brings considerable experience of multi-layered organisations and developing skills and infrastructure which drive economic activity to the role.

She is currently director of Local London, a sub-regional economic growth partnership of nine London boroughs, and was previously head of regulation for the City of London Corporation between 2016 and 2021.

Ms Murray spent 16 years working in Brussels in various senior roles, including leading the East of England Brussels Office, Lancashire Brussels Office and as deputy director at the Channel Islands Brussels Office. She has also served as an executive director of the Thames Estuary Growth Board (2021-2023) and has recently been included on the Net Zero 50 list for 2024.

READ MORE: Freeport boss: 'Now we can move with purpose and energy'

Dame Susan Rice, the US-born banking veteran who chairs FGF, said: “The position of CEO of Forth Green Freeport is core to our success. We conducted a robust recruitment process to ensure that we got the right person for the job, and we’re thrilled to have appointed Sarah. She brings with her a host of qualities and professional experience which are vital for the role as CEO of the Forth Green Freeport and we’re looking forward to working with her to deliver this exciting long-term programme for Scotland.”

Ms Murray said: “This is an exciting opportunity for me personally and for Scotland to deliver significant economic and environmental benefits, both nationally and for local communities. Throughout my career I have gained a wealth of experience of working with multi-layered partnerships and I understand the importance of good, transparent stakeholder engagement. I am looking forward to getting started in August and to begin building on the excellent start that the consortium has already made.”

READ MORE: 'Structural levers need to be pulled to benefit our towns'

In an exclusive interview with The Herald in June, Dame Susan declared FGF could “move with purpose and energy” after securing approval for the outline business case. FGF, which is seeking to attract firms involved in offshore wind, hydrogen, sustainable fuels, modular manufacturing, and logistics to the area, is now developing its final business case, which will be submitted to the Scottish and UK Governments later this summer.

Speaking in June, Dame Susan, a former managing director of Lloyds Banking Group and chief executive of TSB, said a “huge amount of work” had taken place in the development of FGF prior to the outline approval of the business case, highlighting the recent investment by electricity generator RWE in a new green hydrogen plant at Grangemouth. Now it can “move with purpose and some energy because we are all ready to go”, she told The Herald.

Dame Susan said: “It is an important time for the Green Freeport as we move through the business case development phase to delivery for Scotland. Through innovations in offshore wind manufacturing, assembly and commissioning, alongside innovative shipbuilding, modular assembly and hydrogen manufacture, the country’s net-zero targets can be boosted by Forth Green Freeport.”