Humber to receive up to 75 million pounds to build new wind turbine port
Thousands of jobs could be created
Teesside and the Humber will "put the wind in the sails'' of a green industrial revolution by building the next generation of offshore wind turbines, Boris Johnson has said.
The Prime Minister announced plans for up to £95 million to be invested to build new wind ports with the capacity to house up to seven manufacturers in total.
Some 6,000 jobs could be directly created as a result of the developments on the Humber and Tees rivers, the Government said.
Able Marine Energy Park on the south bank of the River Humber will receive up to £75 million, while Teesworks Offshore Manufacturing Centre will benefit from up to £20 million.
Offshore wind manufacturer GE Renewable Energy is the first to invest in Teesside and will build a wind blade factory at the site, creating 750 jobs, the Government said.
The blades will be supplied to the Dogger Bank wind farm off the North East coast - set to be the largest offshore wind farm in the UK.
The funding will be provided from the £160 million investment to upgrade port infrastructure and support manufacturing announced by Mr Johnson last year.
The Prime Minister said:
"During the Industrial Revolution over 200 years ago, wind powered the sails of ships from the Humber and Teesside trading goods around the world.
"Now the Humber and Teesside will put the wind in the sails of our new green industrial revolution, building the next generation of offshore wind turbines whilst creating 6,000 new green jobs in the process.
"Our multimillion-pound investment in these historic coastal communities is a major step towards producing the clean, cheap energy we need to power our homes and economy without damaging the environment.''
Business and Energy Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng added:
"The offshore wind sector is a major British industrial success story, providing cheap, green electricity while supporting thousands of good-quality jobs.
"While the UK has the largest installed capacity of offshore wind in the world, we are determined to ensure we are fully capturing the economic benefits in this country.
"To ensure our businesses, supply chain and high-skilled workforce can fully share in the sector's success, today's investment in the Humber region and Teesside will put the UK in pole position to land new offshore wind investors.
"In the process it will ramp up our domestic manufacturing base and create thousands of good jobs in our industrial heartlands.''
Peter Stephenson, executive chairman of the Able Group, said:
"The Government has set clear policies that provide the offshore wind sector with far greater certainty and market visibility.
"At the same time the sector itself has responded with remarkable innovations and cost reductions which now see it successfully competing with other energy sources.
"We will seek to maximise the benefits, locally and nationally, through increased UK content, new jobs and new opportunities for local businesses.''
Rebecca Newsom, head of politics at Greenpeace UK, said it was a "welcome step in expanding capacity in offshore wind manufacturing''.
"Freeports might be helpful in generating investment, but this must not lead to a drop in environmental standards or poorer working conditions.''