Work on New U.K. Wind Turbine Plant Starts

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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland) - Work to build a giant wind turbine plant in the port of Hull, England, got underway this week with the official ground-breaking ceremony.

Attended by the U.K.'s Secretary of State for Energy & Climate Change, Ed Davey, the new €371 million ($513 million) Green Port Hull project will be built by Siemens AG (NYSE:SI) (Munich, Germany) and partner Associated British Ports (ABP). The project got the green light from local authorities in September. It comprises new project construction, assembly and service facilities at Green Port Hull and a new rotor blade manufacturing facility in nearby Paull, in the East Riding. The two sites will create 1,000 new jobs.

Siemens is the latest in a number of leading wind energy companies to move ahead with facilities designed to capture a share in U.K.'s estimated €117 billion ($154 billion) offshore wind sector.

"The £371 million investment will benefit the U.K. economy by creating green jobs and growth as well as providing secure, sustainable and low-carbon energy," said Minister Davey. "The development will also help to drive down the costs of offshore wind. It marks the beginning of a new industry based here and exporting worldwide."

Michael Hannibal, CEO Offshore of the Siemens Wind Power and Renewables Division added: "The U.K. offshore wind market has seen strong growth, with even greater future potential. By 2020 14 gigawatts (GW) of wind power capacity is to be installed in U.K. waters, to achieve environmental objectives and security of power supply. Our Hull facilities will contribute significantly to the growth of the offshore wind industry in the U.K.."

In 2013, the first dedicated offshore wind turbine terminal in the U.K. or Ireland was completed in Belfast, Northern Ireland, by Danish energy major, Dong Energy's (Fredericia, Denmark) and ScottishPower Renewables (SPR) (Glasgow, Scotland). For additional information, see March 1, 2013, article - U.K. gets First Offshore Wind Terminal.

DONG welcomed the construction kick-off at Siemens' Green Port Hull this week.

Brent Cheshire, U.K. Country Chairman of DONG Energy commented: "As the market leader in offshore wind energy, we are delighted to see that construction is underway for Siemens' project construction, assembly and service centre at Green Port Hull. We have a strong pipeline of offshore wind farms under development and it is vital that we see major suppliers investing in U.K. facilities to support this growing part of the energy sector."

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