One of the oldest bakers in Sussex is moving its operations to Newhaven.

Forfars Bakers employs 150 people at its base at Home Farm industrial estate in Brighton and is relocating to a new production unit in Avis Way, Newhaven.

Forfars hopes to expand its output and profits while reducing overheads and commercial workspace by more than 5,000 sq ft.

Meanwhile CTEC Energy, a leader in heat recovery systems that generate electricity from wasted engine exhaust gas, has won a £200,000 loan to move to a new production plant in Newhaven.

The clean-tech firm forecasts revenues of £15 million by the end of 2015 and will create up to 60 jobs by 2017.

It is moving to a new 15,000 sq ft production facility in Newhaven, with a further £450,000 from private investors for machinery, tooling and computer systems. The new plant will allow the firmto develop links in Europe via Newhaven Port.

Both companies were able to move after securing loans from East Sussex Invest 3 Regional Growth Fund, won by East Sussex County Council and delivered by Locate East Sussex.

Matthew Cutress, production director at Forfars, said: “With the evolution of customer preferences, modern manufacturing methods and more efficient production equipment, our bakery needed resizing and an overhaul. For a 24/365 business like ours, this is inevitably a painful process but essential.

“By moving to Newhaven we are not losing the advantages of the A27, which is our main service route.”

Mike Burns, managing director of CTEC, said: “There is strong demand for our product and our new affordable premises will better allow us to meet this demand.

“Great transport links in our new factory area mean we can receive parts from our suppliers and distribute our product to existing and new clients in Europe and the UK.

“We will train people locally in order to service the systems and then they will go out and train people in the rest of the UK, in Ireland, in France and in Italy.”

Philip Johnson, director of Locate East Sussex, said: “Forfars Bakers and CTEC Energy are excellent examples of how Regional Growth Fund money is allowing organisations to realise their ambitions to grow. Newhaven is emerging as a highly viable alternative for affordable, well-serviced commercial premises for larger SMEs and manufacturing firms, and I am sure we will continue to see increased interest in this area.”

To apply for Regional Growth Funding in East Sussex visit www.locateeastsussex.org.uk.