Plans approved for Pilkingtons’ £36m coating line
ST HELENS Council has approved an application by Pilkingtons to build its new £36m float glass facility at the Cowley Hill site in the town.
The company, which is part of Japanese-owned Nippon Sheet Glass, had announced plans to build the new facility back in April in a move which it said would create 50 skilled jobs as well as expanding its apprenticeship scheme. The project recently gained £5m worth of funding from the Government’s Regional Growth Fund initiative.
Permission was granted for the company to knock down existing buildings on the 56 hectare site and build two new buildings to help form the new line, which should become operational by October 2012.
The line will produce high performance, low emissivity glazing products, complementing its widely used Pilkington K Glass, as well as solar control glass. These ranges, which are currently produced in Sweden and Germany, will reduce transport costs and help lower carbon emissions caused by shipping glass.
Councillor Andy Bowden, cabinet member for urban regeneration and housing at St Helens Council, said: “This is a huge vote of confidence for St.Helens from a major international corporation.
“Council officers have worked closely with the company to ensure the successful delivery of this investment which strengthens the long term future of float glass production in St. Helens. It also underpins the city-region’s low carbon strategy.”
