Wind turbine plant to create 2,000 jobs
This article sets out some very good news for the renewables sector in England.
It reveals: “Wind turbine giant Vestas is planning to build a new factory in the UK, creating 2,000 jobs, the company said today. The Danish-owned firm is applying for planning permission for a new plant at Sheerness in Kent to build turbines for the offshore wind industry.
“The announcement is a huge boost for the UK’s renewable energy sector and follows Vestas’ controversial decision to close a factory on the Isle of Wight with the loss of hundreds of jobs.”
I did some work with people at the South East of England Development Agency last year and I was really impressed by the way the agency was keen to drive the agenda around renewables. Although only a year ago it seems like an eternity in terms of the massive structural changes to economic development since then.
I am not surprised at all that some of the people I met have had a key role in helping pull this investment off. There are a lot of people who assume the South East is universally affluent – I know that there are large areas of Kent which are anything but economically vibrant and this investment will be a positive and exciting development for those tasked with regeneration in that county.