The investment at its TÜV SÜD Limited (NEL) site in the Scottish Enterprise Technology Park will help cement Scotland’s position as a global leader in the subsea engineering and oil & gas sector.

TÜV SÜD AG will invest £11.1m to develop the CoE, while Scottish Enterprise will provide a £4.9m research and development grant.

The facility will enable NEL to provide world leading fluid flow technical services to the global oil & gas production market over the next 25 years.

In addition, the CoE will offer potential benefits to companies in other sectors such as nuclear power, food and drink, aerospace and renewable energy.

Overall, development will create at least 17 new jobs and safeguard a further 82 roles once it is built over the next two years.

Speaking during a visit to the Scottish Enterprise Technology Park, economy secretary Keith Brown said: “It is a testament to the international standing of the oil and gas sector in Scotland that the company has chosen to make this investment.

“It also reflects the bright future that the oil and gas industry and its supply chain can enjoy, especially when supported by innovations such as this Centre for Excellence for Flow Measurement and Fluid Mechanics‎.

“When complete, the centre will place Scotland as a world leader in this exciting field. This will not only help the oil and gas sector to maximise economic recovery, but could have wide-ranging benefits for the food and drink, renewable and aerospace industries, supporting sustainable growth across the Scottish economy.”

Brian Millington, NEL’s managing director, said: “This will be an enormous boost for NEL’s business given all the oil & gas sector challenges of recent years, and will represent a superb opportunity to maintain and enhance NEL’s profile of a genuine world-leader in flow measurement.”

Managing director of strategy and sectors at Scottish Enterprise, Linda Hanna, added: “Our £4.9m contribution was the catalyst behind NEL securing over £11 million of funding from its parent company, ensuring the skills and expertise at NEL are anchored in Scotland for the long term.

“This new facility will offer research facilities and a breadth of capability unmatched anywhere else in the world, supporting Scotland’s oil & gas sector to maximise its global competitiveness and position Scotland as a global leader in multiphase flow measurement.”