Freeport given launch approval at Humber sites
NEW TAX SITES CAN START TO OPERATE FROM NEXT MONTH
THE Humber Freeport has been given the all-clear to launch.
Together with Teesside and Thames models, the first tax sites can start to operate from next month, the Chancellor has confirmed.
One of eight confirmed in the Spring Budget, the go-ahead was documented in the Treasury’s Budget Report, the “red book” laid before the House of Commons when Rishi Sunak got to his feet on Wednesday.
A further £230m for the country’s push on offshore wind was included.
Humber was recognised as the leading bid, submitted with Associated British Ports heading it.
Port director, Simon Bird, chairs the steering company.
He said: “It is fantastic news, great news for the Humber.
“The opportunities the freeport will bring, with two tax zones approved and a third which will come through, are fantastic and enable us to go on with all that decarbonisation offers to the North and South Bank through offshore wind, hydrogen and carbon capture, alongside the manufacturing.”
He said interest was strong, with the confirmation received making it an even stronger case to present as an investment opportunity.
“We have the company Pensana, having already announced its intention to develop a rare earths processing complex, confident in the delivery of a freeport.
“They can see the benefits freeport will bring, and that’s the Humber winning over other sites in the UK because they had the belief. We landed a very compelling bid in front of the Government, and I couldn’t be more delighted.
“A lot of work has gone into this opportunity, and the private and public sector really got after it, to really maximise it, and I can assure everyone we are doing just that. The local authority stakeholders have been magnificent in their support.”
Special mention was given to Cleethorpes and Immingham MP Martin Vickers, who chaired the all party parliamentary group on freeports, keeping up a constant dialogue.
In the first wave the two tax sites approved are East Hull (Port of Hull and Siemens Gamesa’s wind blade manufacturing facility, Saltend, the Humber International Enterprise Park and the Yorkshire Energy Park) and Humber Southbank (Port of Immingham and Able Marine Energy Park.
The Goole tax site is described as “still making good progress” and is anticipated in the next wave.
A total of 7,000 jobs have been eyed as part of the opportunity, with custom zones locations across the patch, including the four main ports, with three new tax sites highlighted for land east of Port of Hull, Goole and Able Marine Energy Park at North Killingholme.
Significant seed capital resources to ensure the benefits of freeport status are felt across all four Humber local authority areas, including at the South Humber Industrial Investment Project site between Grimsby and Immingham, are also part of it.
The first phase of AMEP works will see the development of up to 536 acres of land and the construction of 1,349m of heavy-duty, deep-water quays, to develop a bespoke facility to serve the needs of the offshore wind sector. It is hoped 1,500 people will be employed by 2030, with the figure doubled in the immediate supply chain.