Turbine blades for £4bn offshore windfarm in East Anglia to be built in Hull

The Siemens Gamesa's factory in Hull employs 1,300 people, having recruited more than 600 people in the last year.

Turbine blades for a huge windfarm in the North Sea will be built at Siemens Gamesa's factory in Hull in a deal worth £1billion.

The facility, which employs 1,300 people, will make blades for 64 turbines which have a rotor diameter of more than 200m - almost the height of the observation deck at London's Shard.

The finished turbines will be used at Scottish Power's East Anglia Two windfarm, located almost 33km off the Suffolk coast and able to generate enough electricity to power a million homes.

Scottish Power has called the deal a "huge boost" for UK manufacturing.

Boss Keith Anderson said: "Today is tangible proof of the importance of Britain’s clean power mission – our East Anglia projects are delivering UK jobs, UK supply chain contracts and UK green energy.

"Getting more projects like East Anglia Two off the blocks quicker will turbo-boost the UK’s supply chain, giving companies like Siemens Gamesa the confidence to invest in facilities like this blade factory in Hull."

The factory in Hull has recruited 600 new workers in the past year, taking the total workforce to 1,300.

The windfarm is one of three East Anglia projects run by Scottish Power, the first of which is already in operation.

Darren Davidson, UK head of Siemens, said: "The UK is the first leading industrial country to simultaneously phase out coal power and be a leader in offshore wind.

"If we’re to achieve our net zero targets, it’s mission critical this momentum is maintained. As well as delivering the blades to power the UK’s energy transition, our factory in Hull is acting as a catalyst for economic growth and green jobs across the region."

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