A businessman is suing a major bank for £10m after his meat processing plant went into administration before it opened.
John Sutherland says the Bank of Scotland promised him more than £2m to fund his Caithness Beef and Lamb factory, which was then reneged on.
The state-of-the-art abbatoir has now gone into administration before production even started.
Mr Sutherland said: "We were well-through finished building the factory in the middle of 2008.
"I got a phone call from the manager saying life has changed for the bank and they were stopping giving money to everybody."
Mr Sutherland said he had a good relationship with the bank for 40 years.
His solicitor, Jim Kelly, said: "A claim has already been intimated for nearly £10m. That relates to consequential loss suffered by the group as a result of the bank reneging on their previous commitments."
Administrators RSM Tenon say there has been strong interest in the plant, with more than 15 enquiries from across the UK and Europe so far.
A Bank of Scotland spokesman said he could not comment on individual cases.
It is understood that the bank will contest any legal action or accusation of wrongdoing.
Mr Sutherland says he is prepared to take his case all the way and hopes one day to finally see the factory open.
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