Prime Minister arrives at COP to deliver clean energy jobs as major deals in ports and industry announced

• Prime Minister arrives at COP30 with major vote of confidence from industry to build the UK's clean energy revolution and deliver national renewal .  

• Well-paid, quality, skilled jobs secured with new deals across Greater Manchester, Great Yarmouth and Belfast to deploy and maintain offshore wind turbines and build one of the UK's biggest battery energy storage facilities. 

• UK at COP as global leader of climate action - championing the interests of working people by delivering energy security and protecting our children and grandchildren from climate change.    

• Prime Minister told sixth former students earlier this week he is going to COP: “for our country, our planet, and for you”.    

Industrial heartlands and coastal communities across the UK are set to benefit from skilled jobs, economic growth and greater energy security as new deals are announced to accelerate the drive for clean, homegrown power.      

Major deals confirmed today from ScottishPower, JERA Nex bp and EnBW and Statera Energy will revitalise UK port infrastructure and develop world-leading battery storage facilities.  

The deals will support an estimated 600 jobs across the North-West, Great Yarmouth, and Belfast.  

In a speech at the World Leader's Summit in Belem, Brazil, the Prime Minister will set out how clean energy is the economic opportunity of the 21st century – with over £50 billion of investment into UK clean energy industries announced since last year and 800,000 jobs expected by the end of the decade.     

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said:  

“Its full speed ahead in our mission to bring about the clean power revolution – delivering energy security, getting bills down for good and generating growth in communities across the UK.  

“Creating skilled, well-paid jobs across Great Yarmouth, Belfast and Greater Manchester, this is national renewal in action - championing the interests of working people all over the country.  

“I won't let down future generations. At COP30 I will continue to show UK leadership on the world stage to work with others to stand up for our values and our future.”   

Today at COP30 the Prime Minister will meet global leaders and businesses to reinforce the UK's commitment to providing leadership on the world stage for global climate action.   

The UK has led the way with its 2035 nationally determined contribution to reduce all greenhouse gas emissions by at least 81% on 1990 levels.  

He will continue to work with other countries to do more to tackle the climate crisis, to protect our planet and keep the goal to limit temperature increases to 1.5 degrees within reach.  

The UK is setting the pace internationally, today's deals have been supported by the government's drive for homegrown, clean power:  

JERA Nex bp and EnBW through their Mona and Morgan joint ventures, are committing over £100 million to Belfast Harbour to support the delivery of two major offshore wind farms in the Irish Sea. The joint venture partners have leased the Trust Port's offshore wind terminal as the hub for the assembly and construction of the Mona and Morgan wind farms, with government consent granted earlier this year for Mona and for Morgan Generation (Morgan Transmission Assets consent is expected in 2026). Once operational they could deliver enough clean energy to power the equivalent of around 3 million UK homes every year. The commitment has the potential to create more than 300 jobs. The landmark deal has enabled Belfast Harbour to invest £90 million in a new deepwater berth to support cruise tourism and further offshore wind projects in the future. 

Investment into Port of East Anglia including £15m as part of a wider £28m upgrade to build a new operations and maintenance centre, with Scottish Power supporting the East Anglia TWO windfarm in the North Sea. This is in addition to a £10 million investment from Scottish Power and Peel Ports Group to develop the port's Northern Terminal to work on future offshore wind projects supporting an estimated 100 jobs. This follows the Prime Minister's announcement at COP29 last year of a major £1 billion turbine contract for the Siemens Gamesa blade factory in Greenport Hull. Blades manufactured at this facility are set to be installed off the Suffolk coast powering East Anglia TWO, with the Port of East Anglia selected to carry out the pre-assembly and load-out of the turbines, demonstrating the region's significance to the UK's offshore wind supply chain. 

Carrington in Greater Manchester will host one of the UK's largest battery sites, with Statera Energy confirming Final Investment Decision on a 680MW Battery Energy Storage System. The site will help balance the grid and will deliver clean power for up to 2.2 million homes, supporting an estimated 200 jobs in the region.    

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said:      
   
“Clean energy is the engine of Britain's economic renewal. Today's investments will give a generation of young people well-paid skilled work in making wind turbines and developing our world-class port infrastructure.      
   

“The UK's message to the world at COP30 is simple: working together to tackle climate change is the route to good jobs, energy security and economic growth – let's get on with it.”   
   

Earlier this week the Prime Minister told sixth formers he was going to COP because of the “obligation we undoubtedly have to safeguard the planet for generations to come, but also hundreds of thousands of jobs in this country”.  
   

He said: “I hope we can make a real success of it, for our country, our planet, and for you”.    
   

This follows last month's commitment to create five new clean energy Technical Excellence Colleges to train next generation of workers, as part of plans to bring 400,000 extra jobs by 2030 - with high demand for roles including plumbers, electricians and welders.  
   

COP30 comes at a moment when the world is moving on clean energy and climate action.  
   

Globally already twice as much is invested in clean energy ($2trn) as fossil fuels, more is invested in solar each year than all other power sources combined. Renewables have this year overtaken coal as the biggest source of electricity globally.    
   

Here in the UK the clean energy economy is booming thanks to the investment decisions of this Government - with £50 billion of private investment announced, and in October the first ever national plan to recruit the clean energy workers was launched, delivering 400,000 extra jobs by 2030.   
   

Building on our mission to deliver lower bills and good jobs for people at home, at COP30 the UK will work with others to make progress towards the goal to triple renewables globally by 2030 - strong leadership at home to deliver action abroad.     

Keith Anderson, CEO of ScottishPower, said: 

“This year we've announced a record £24 billion UK investment programme to deliver more power and more grid for Britain. This spans the country and has delivered transformational change for the communities we work with. 

“The £10m investment in the Port of East Anglia comes a decade on from our previous £5m investment, ensuring a continuous upgrading of port facilities to take advantage of the economic benefits of renewables and supporting hundreds of local jobs.  This is one more important piece of our wider multi-billion-pound programme of investment in our East Anglia offshore wind farms. 

“We invest for the long-term and working with our partners at Peel Ports we are helping deliver the modern port infrastructure needed for East Anglia.” 

Tom Vernon, CEO of  Statera Energy, said: 

“Statera Energy is proud to support the UK's clean energy ambitions. Our Carrington Storage project demonstrates how investment in flexible infrastructure can help balance a renewable-led grid, create skilled jobs, and drive industrial growth.  

“With a pipeline of 8GW of grid-balancing projects representing up to £7 billion of planned investment through to 2030, Statera is committed to playing its part in the delivery of a clean, secure, and affordable energy system for the UK.” 

Nathalie Oosterlinck, CEO JERA Nex bp said: 

“The Mona and Morgan joint venture's planned commitment of over £100 million to Belfast Harbour is a direct contribution to the infrastructure needed to drive the energy transition. This highlights the power of collaboration in driving energy security – the offshore wind industry can not only power millions of homes with clean, homegrown energy but also support job creation and local economic growth. It's a clear demonstration of how strategic investments in renewable energy can make a lasting impact on both the environment and the economy." 

  
Dr Theresa Donaldson, Chair of Belfast Harbour Commissioners, said:   

“Belfast Harbour is committed to playing our part in delivering a low carbon economy by enabling pioneering offshore wind projects. Belfast Harbour is the only port on the island of Ireland with offshore wind facilities and over the next decade we aim to expand our capacity and enhance our reputation as a key hub for the offshore wind sector. 

“As a trust port, accelerating to net zero and advancing regional prosperity are guiding principles for us and this deal delivers for Northern Ireland on both fronts by contributing to clean energy production, creating jobs, providing opportunities for the local supply chain and ultimately helping to grow the economy.”