Call for ‘far more ambition’ after PM unveils green energy plans

The Northern Powerhouse Partnership wants the Government to go much further with its proposals to begin a green industrial revolution.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has pledged that offshore wind farms will generate enough electricity to power every home in the UK within a decade.

And he announced £160m to upgrade ports and factories for building turbines to help the country “build back greener”.

The plan aims to create 2,000 jobs in construction and support 60,000 more.

The scheme will see the money invested into manufacturing in Humber and Teesside, as well as sites in Scotland and Wales.

Henri Murison, director of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, today responded: “If we’re going to harness the full economic potential of a renewable energy revolution, it’s critical that we build more of the supply chain here in the UK – not overseas for the assembly, as is currently the case for a number of upcoming projects.

“The Siemens blade factory in Hull, which was a huge success of the coalition government including Sir Ed Davey and the then Chancellor George Osborne with the manufacturing sector, serves as the archetypal example of how the North can lead the way in the green recovery.

“While this promised investment in places such as Teesside and the Humber is a step in the right direction, we need to be far more ambitious when it comes to other green sectors found across the North, including SMRs, carbon capture and storage and the opportunities that gives in negative carbon emissions and for hydrogen, with R&D though opportunities like Net Zero North, a key part of decarbonising domestic heat.

“These industries together have the power along with local solutions and smart technology to put us in the lead of the fourth industrial revolution in energy, securing hundreds of thousands of high skilled, well paid jobs and bringing us closer to our goal of Net Zero for the UK.”

Meanwhile, the head of Able UK has said its marine energy park development on the River Humber is “uniquely placed” to deliver the ambition for the UK to become a world leader in wind energy.

Able UK executive chairman, Pater Stephenson, said: “That the Prime Minister, even in these difficult times, chooses to focus on the burgeoning offshore wind sector is proof positive that the Government is seeing the bigger picture and wishes to grasp this singular but time limited opportunity.

“Of course, the reality is that before we can talk about manufacturing and maximising UK content, we need to put the building blocks in place and the fully consented Able Marine Energy Park (AMEP) is uniquely placed to deliver the ideal UK solution.

“Working closely with a number if Government departments we are committed to bringing this development to fruition.

“We are at varying stages of negotiation with a number of manufacturers who clearly recognise the strength of the UK’s offshore wind sector and who, just as significantly, are fully embracing the need to establish a new ‘world-scale’ industrial cluster on the Humber.”

“Only last month the Korean manufacturer SeAH confirmed that it had signed an exclusive Memorandum of Understanding with AMEP to establish what would be the UK’s first large-scale monopile production facility.”

Click here to sign up to receive our new South West business news...
Close