Siemens backing Brexit UK with a 700-job factory
SIEMENS signalled its commitment to Britain yesterday as it revealed plans to build a train factory in East Yorkshire.
The German engineering giant is proposing to build a £200million plant in Goole to manufacture and commission trains, generating 700 skilled jobs.
Another 250 could be employed in the construction phase, with an estimated 1,700 indirect jobs created throughout the UK supply chain.
The firm said the factory had the potential to have a ‘ tremendous impact on the Yorkshire economy and the North of England as a whole’.
The move would be Siemens’s second landmark investment in East Yorkshire following its £300million wind turbine blade plant, which employs hundreds of people 30 miles away in Hull.
Yesterday’s announcement was described by Transport Secretary Chris Grayling as a ‘ sign of confidence in the United Kingdom’.
He added: ‘You don’t invest money in Britain if you don’t see the potential in Britain, and Siemens already has a strong track record in this country. They are already an important part of our technology and engineering sectors.’
Executives said the exact employment figures would depend on future orders, such as for HS2 and the London Underground. But they envisaged the plant eventually producing four trains a month for the British market. Because it will supply trains to the UK market, the factory will not be affected by export tariffs to the EU if they are introduced after Brexit.
But Siemens made the commitment despite facing the possibility of import tariffs on parts shipped from Europe.
Juergen Maier, chief executive at Siemens UK, said: ‘ This investment has the potential to have a tremendous impact on the Yorkshire economy and the North of England as a whole, ensuring that the benefits of infrastructure spending are spread widely and helping to ensure the ongoing development of the UK rail industry.’
Siemens said it already employed 4,400 in the transport sector out of a total 15,000-strong UK workforce.
It said there were currently 450 Siemens-built trains in service and the company had eight purpose-built maintenance facilities in the UK.
The announcement came after Toyota pledged this week to build the next generation of its popular Auris car in Britain. The Japanese firm said it will be produced at its plant in Burnaston, Derbyshire, with engines mostly from its Deeside factory in North Wales.
Toyota spent £240million last year on upgrading the Burnaston site. The move secures 2,500 jobs in Derbyshire and 500 in Wales. Toyota built 119,000 Auris cars at Burnaston last year.