THE company which plans to build a distillery on Inverclyde land with historic links to Robert the Bruce is looking to raise £17 million to fund its development.

The team behind Ardgowan Distillery have enlisted advisers at accountancy firm Campbell Dallas to assist the fundraiser, having already brought in more than £500,000 in seed capital.

It is anticipated that the £17m will cover the construction and commissioning of the distillery, as well as production costs for the first three years.

A mix of high net worth individuals, family offices, overseas investors and companies in the whisky supply chain are being courted, with the company noting that the distillery will be funded by a combination of equity, debt funding and some public money via the Food Processing Marketing and Cooperation grant scheme. With planning permission secured from Inverclyde Council earlier this month, the project to build the distillery and visitor centre on Ardgowan Estate is slated to begin later this year. It is hoped the distillery will be operational in 2019.

Ardgowan chairman Willie Phillips, a former managing director of The Macallan Distillers, said: “I think the Ardgowan Distillery is a terrific commercial proposition and Campbell Dallas is the right firm to assist us with this fundraising – they have a strong track record of advising on funding as well as an excellent understanding of the brewing and distilling sector.”

The fundraiser was announced shortly after Ardgowan unveiled a series of senior hires to occupy top roles. In February chief executive Martin McAdam was joined by former Bruichladdich and Springbank director Gordon Wright and ex-Hiram Walker distiller Michael Egan. Mr Phillips had joined before.