Wind turbines give Tyne hope for hundreds of jobs

Sep 29 2009 by Adrian Pearson, The Journal

ONE of the world’s biggest wind turbine producers is at the forefront of plans to secure thousands of Tyneside jobs, The Journal can reveal.

Siemens are searching for a site to locate a new factory producing offshore wind turbines. A team from the firm, which is one of Europe’s biggest manufacturers, has already been shown around locations in North Tyneside in a bid to secure the investment.

One potential site would be the former Swan Hunter base which was recently bought by North Tyneside Council. Mayor Linda Arkley is now looking to use the site to underpin regeneration along the north bank of the Tyne.

The battle to bring the thousands of jobs to the North East is being led by Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who has held talks with Siemens bosses eager to set up two factories.

The company already owns a turbine servicing company in North Tyneside and will have noted the £4.4m handed over to American turbine manufacturer Clipper Windpower earlier this month.

An even larger cash incentive is likely to be offered to Siemens who would be expected to play a crucial role in producing the thousands of turbines set to be placed off the North East coast. Such a large expansion in the offshore wind market would guarantee a widening market for the company, underpinning the creation of thousands of new jobs.

At Labour’s annual conference yesterday Energy Secretary Ed Miliband would not be drawn on how far negotiations have got, instead pointing to a further £20m on offer to support renewable energy. That fund could be used to offer further incentives to Siemens as part of Tyneside’s economic transformation.