The UK government has made a firm commitment to
regeneration and clean energy production in the
Teesside area, with an ambition for 25,000 new jobs and
over £1 billion of investment across a 10-year period,
and today, the minister spoke about making that a
reality.
Energy Minister said:
Today I have seen the exciting opportunities here to
regenerate this iconic site, and, crucially, bring
skilled jobs and clean growth to the area. I look
forward to seeing the development of these proposals
to develop and breathe new life into this site.
The government has already invested substantial amounts
in the area and the Autumn Budget set out a further
£123 million of funding to continue work to secure the
site. Today, the minister met Tees Valley Mayor
, the Local
Enterprise Partnership, Clean Growth investors, the
South Tees Development Company and members of the South
Tees Site Company as well as taking a tour of the
former steel site at Redcar and Cleveland.
Tees Valley Mayor said:
Our concentration of industry along the coastline
perfectly places the region as the go-to location for
green energy proposals such as Carbon Capture and
Storage. It is fantastic that government recognises
our industrial strengths and has reaffirmed their
commitment to developing this transformational
proposal. I was delighted to share our ambitious
plans with the minister today, and made clear to her
that Teesside is ready and waiting to take this
forward.
A move to low-carbon, clean energy offers a
remarkable economic opportunity for our area and the
UK as a whole. Our projects would attract inward
investment, create jobs and put Tees Valley at the
forefront of the clean energy revolution. Now we need
to work constructively with government to push ahead
and make these schemes a reality.
The site is of particular interest in the development
of carbon capture usage and storage - which aims to
capture carbon dioxide emitted from industry and power
plants for permanent storage under the North Sea. This
game-changing technology and many more exciting
projects were discussed as part of today’s visit.
Business Minister was also in
Teesside today setting out his vision through a keynote
speech to workers, industry and local MPs at Community
Union’s Steel Sector Conference. The minister talked
about his commitment to steelmaking regions across the
UK and the importance of putting the sector at the
heart of the UK’s Industrial Strategy.
Last year, the government set out its plan for growth
and regeneration across the UK with its Industrial
Strategy aiming for an economy that boosts
productivity and earning power throughout the UK. A key
part of that is growing new jobs, and Teesside has a
crucial role to play.
