Up to 600 jobs could be created in the Highlands after a £330m deal saved the last aluminium smelter in the UK.

Liberty House has completed the deal with mining firm Rio Tinto to buy the smelter in Lochaber and hydro-power plants at Fort William and Kinlochleven.

The company has promised to protect an existing 170 jobs in Lochaber and intends to expand metal manufacturing and downstream engineering at the site.

The deal could reportedly bring up to 2000 jobs to the Highlands directly and indirectly through suppliers and add around £1bn to the local economy over the next decade.

Liberty House, which is part of the GFG Alliance group, has also announced plans to invest £120m upgrading equipment and creating an aluminium wheel manufacturing facility.

The proposal is expected to create up to 300 jobs directly and hundreds more in the supply chain.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: "This is a historic day for the UK's last remaining aluminium smelter here in Lochaber.

"GFG Alliance's buyout of the complex will protect 170 existing jobs and with ambitious plans to invest in the site, expand operations and add value, we look forward to hundreds of new jobs being created in the coming years.

"The Scottish Government is supporting GFG by guaranteeing the power purchases of the aluminium smelter, which reinforces the essential link between the smelter and hydro station at Fort William and provides a firm foundation for GFG's ambitious expansion plans."

GFG Alliance reportedly sees the Lochaber aluminium operation as fitting into Liberty's growing automotive industry focus.

Sanjeev Gupta, executive chairman of Liberty House Group and of the GFG Alliance strategic board, said: "We hope this day will come to be recognised as the start of a bright new future for Highland industry.

"It puts Lochaber right at the heart of our vision for sustainable and integrated local production that can revitalise British manufacturing.

"We look forward to working with the highly skilled management team and workforce who join our family today and the many others who will join us in the future, as we embark upon this exciting journey here in the Highlands."

The deal also includes the sale of more than 100,000 acres of estate lands around the foothills of Ben Nevis which will be used as a water catchment area.