It will make steel foundations for offshore wind turbines at a 90-acre site in Teesworks, next to the River Tees. SeAH Wind is expected to create 750 direct jobs plus another 1,500 in the supply chain, with the facility fully up and running by 2026. Joosung Lee, chief executive of SeAH Steel Holdings, said this is a “significant step” in developing the UK offshore wind industry.
He added: “We will endeavour to make our factory globally competitive as well as becoming a good member of the community.”
The new state-owned UK Infrastructure Bank is investing £107million to help create a new quay next to where the factory will be built, to serve the offshore wind sector.
Construction is expected to start in July.
Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen said: “This is another transformational project that places Teesside as the UK lead for clean, green manufacturing.
“SeAH is an internationally recognised manufacturing company with an incredible reputation for quality and it’s a real coup that we’ve been able to secure their investment for Teesside.”
But one Teesside firm has hit out at the deal.
Able Group is developing an energy park near Grimsby, Lincolnshire, where the SeAH plant was originally due to be built. The company has complained that public funding for the Teeswork site has undermined its project.
Able’s executive chairman Peter Stephenson said: “We find ourselves having to compete with what, in reality, is a taxpayer-funded development
on the Tees.”
The Teesside Freeport zone, which was announced last year, covers 4,500 acres and offers stamp duty and business rates relief to encourage business investment into the area.
It aims to create more than 18,000 jobs.
