North East gets new turbine factory

2010-02-22
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Prime Minister Gordon Brown has highlighted the North East's potential to become a global technology hub as he announced a new wind turbine blades factory in Newcastle.

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Prime Minister Gordon Brown has highlighted the North East's potential to become a global technology hub as he announced a new wind turbine blades factory in Newcastle.

Around 500 jobs are expected to be created at the Clipper Windpower Neptune Blade Facility on the banks of the River Tyne.

Mr Brown visited the Shepherd Offshore Renewable Energy Park to oversee start of the work on the new 43,000 sq ft facility.

When completed, the factory will build the world's largest wind turbine blades - 236ft (72 metre) long and weighing more than 30 tonnes.

The blades are being developed for Clipper's 10MW offshore wind turbine prototype, Britannia Project, which is scheduled to be deployed by late 2012.

Mr Brown said: "This is an area which had a shipbuilding industry which was renowned throughout the world, respected for the standard of craftsmanship, and the skill of the work done here that was sold to the rest of the world.

"Now again we have the opportunity to lead the world from the North East.

"This is a new industry where Britain can be number one in the world and where the technologies constructed here can be built, developed and constructed and then sent out to the world from the Tyne."

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