Offshore wind powers into North-East

An offshore wind boom has blown into the North East, with more than 440 jobs being created thanks to some £130M of government and private investment.

Offshore wind cabling manufacturer JDR Cable Systems Ltd is receiving funding from the government’s £160M Offshore Wind Manufacturing Investment Support scheme, which, together with private investment from the company, will see £130M invested in facilities that will develop and build components for next generation wind turbines.

The investment will centre on a new factory in Cambois, near Blyth, as well as protecting jobs at its existing facility in Hartlepool.

The investment has come about as part of the Prime Minister’s 10 Point Plan, and brings the total investment of government and private sector investment to £675M this year, which is creating and protecting almost 3,600 jobs across the Humber and North-East. The investment will build on the UK’s offshore wind capacity, helping to deliver clean electricity generation as the country ends its reliance on coal for power by 2024.

As the UK steps up building a secure home-grown renewable energy sector and is reducing its reliance on unreliable fossil fuels and exposure to volatility in global wholesale energy prices, the capacity for using clean, domestic offshore wind to help power the country is set to accelerate in the next decade.

Business and Energy Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said: “The UK’s offshore wind sector is a major industrial success story, but we need to ensure local workers and manufacturers fully reap the economic benefits of this booming industry.

This major investment is a perfect example of how our transition to a low carbon economy can attract new industries, create jobs, reduce our reliance on unreliable fossil fuels and generate export opportunities as we build back greener from the pandemic.”

The new Blyth facility will supply the Hartlepool site with state-of-the-art cable cores and high voltage underwater cabling that will enable the UK to compete more effectively with foreign manufacturers and increase its standing in global export markets.

The creation of new ports and the development of new factories on the Humber and on Teesside is supporting government ambition to build a domestic manufacturing base while backing industry to reach its self-imposed target to ensure 60% of offshore wind farm content comes from the UK supply chain.

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