Tuesday January 13th 2026
The sites gas holder was dismantled in 2023 (photo by Ian Simpson).
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Paul Kelly
A landmark industrial site in Galashiels is set to undergo a facelift.
It’s now almost three years since an iconic gas holder at Galafoot vanished from the town’s skyline.
For some its removal marked the end of an industrial era but others saw it as a long-standing blot on the landscape and they welcomed its dismantlement.
Gas holders had been a visible presence across the British landscape since Victorian times, storing volumes of gas to satisfy the ever increasing demand for gas in towns across the UK.
But with the discovery of natural gas in the North Sea in the 1960s, the need for local gas in towns across the country went into decline and so did the usefulness of gas holders.
The site forms part of a land regeneration program managed by SGN (Scottish Gas Networks).
Now SGN has submitted a planning application to Scottish Borders Council for redevelopment works at the Transco Gas Works in Galafoot Lane.
The proposed redevelopment would see the removal of pre-fabricated buildings/shipping containers, the erection of a kit storage building and a pre-fabricated office building.
A report with the application states: “The proposed redevelopment is the rationalisation of the existing site consisting of the removal of the existing gas tank, which has already been undertaken, a renewal and extension of the yard hard standing, along with new associated buildings and covered storage areas.”
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