Posted on March 18, 2021
Two new UK ports will be constructed to support the development of next-generation offshore wind projects with up to GB£95m investment.
Able Marine Energy Park, on the South Bank of the River Humber, will receive up to GB£75m government investment, and Teesworks Offshore Manufacturing Centre, on the River Tees, will benefit from up to GB£20m. Construction and infrastructure work will begin later this year. Together these new ports will have the capacity to house up to seven manufacturers.
Manufacturing factory deal
GE Renewable Energy business LM Wind Power will build a new offshore wind turbine blade manufacturing factory at the Teesside port. Due to open and start production in 2023, the blades produced by GE Renewables will be supplied to the Dogger Bank Wind Farm, located off the North East coast, and exported to international markets. The Humber region is already home to six operational offshore wind farms including Hornsea One.
“GE Renewable Energy’s new blade turbine manufacturing plant will transform a former steelworks site on Teesside into a high-tech clean energy powerhouse, creating thousands of highly-skilled jobs in our UK supply chain,” said Hugh McNeal, chief executive of RenewableUK.
He added the “announcement marks the start of the next generation of offshore wind manufacturing in the UK”.
UK offshore wind boost
Once complete, the two ports will have the capacity to support the development of up to 9GW of energy offshore wind projects each year.
The creation of new ports and the development of new factories will support industry to reach its target of 60% of offshore wind farm content coming from the UK supply chain. The ports will play a part in the government’s target to quadruple the UK’s offshore wind capacity to produce 40GW of energy from offshore wind by 2030 and help the UK reach zero emissions by 2050.
Government funding will be provided through the GB£160m investment to upgrade port infrastructure and support manufacturing announced by the Prime Minister in October 2020.
Both Teesside and Humberside have been named as freeports.
