Nissan Announcement Good News for Green Industry in the Region
Nick with the Prime Minister at the Nissan plant on Monday
Today’s announcements at Nissan are fantastic news for our region. The company has confirmed plans to make Sunderland its European hub for making batteries for electric vehicles. This will mean 350 jobs created at the plant, and the promise of more as the technology gets going.
Nick visited Nissan in January when things were looking tough for the workforce there. This turnaround proves that hard work by the region’s public bodies, together with real engagement of the private sector, can bring jobs even in difficult economic times. This downturn does not have to push thousands into long term unemployment as was allowed to happen in the 1980s.
It’s no coincidence that Nissan have decided to base their push for low-carbon vehicles here in the North East. Nick has visited green programmes right across the region, ranging from the environmentally friendly panelled lighting being made by Thorn Lighting in Durham, to plans for solar-energy generating glass at Romag in Consett.
And earlier this month Nick joined the Prime Minister to see the plans for developing carbon capture technology at the Rio Tinto plant at Lynemouth. The scheme is well advanced, and has the benefit of being next to the North Sea, where the capture and storage would take place. Right across the region there is a developing culture of industrial environmentalism, and a desire to root our economy in the growing industries of the future.
At the heart of this are the ambitious plans for a windfarm factory on the Tyne. Clipper have now confirmed their intention to bring work to the old shipyards, convinced by Nick’s case that we can provide the experience and the skills to drive forward this industry. Companies of this size and international standing locating in our area will provide thousands of jobs which can last for generations.
The Government last week published the National Strategy for Climate and Energy. In order to reach the 2020 target of a 34% cut in emissions, 40% of our electricity will have to come from low-carbon sources, including wind.
By making the North Bank of the Tyne the UK centre for renewable energy we are putting East Newcastle at the centre of the UK’s plans for combating climate change, and at the forefront of a world market for green technology.
