Billions of pounds are being invested in Tees Valley's process sector. The industry has secured more than £1.5bn of investment in the recent years—with billions more still to come.

So where is that money being spent Plans are on track to build a £2bn heavy oil processing plant on Teesside.

The specialist refinery, to be built on the Wilton site, could process its first oil in 2014.

The ambitious project, announced in October 2007, is being undertaken by Sonhoe.

It is the biggest single industry investment on Teesside and will be the first specialist plant of its type in Northern Europe.

It will process previously untapped heavy oil from the North Sea oil fields and from other oil fields across the world.

About 2,500 construction jobs could be created when work starts on the Sonhoe plant and there would be 450 permanent jobs created.

It is also estimated the plant could create a further 1,500 spin-off jobs.

Olefins 6 Cracker

A multi-million overhaul on Sabic's key Teesside site — the Olefins 6 cracker — has been completed in a task involving more than 3,000 staff.

The £35m overhaul is being followed in the coming months with a similar scale investment in plant to boost production of key products, ethylene and propylene.

Norwegian firm Yara is spending nearly £24m on a carbon dioxide processing plant on Teesside.

The development as been described as the "final piece in the jigsaw" for bosses behind Ensus' ambitious biofuel plans at Wilton.

The 250,000t liquid CO2 facility to be built next to the emerging £250m wheat-to-enthanol refinery at Wilton, will close the carbon loop, creating what is thought to be the first zero-waste biofuels facility in the country.

Ensus' wheat-tobioethanol plant is due to go into production in 2009.

Wilton 10

Sembcorp Utilities has invested £60m in Wilton 10, the first totally wood burning biomass power station in the UK.

It is also investing £36m in a project to enhance its supply of utilities at the Wilton International site.

Tees Valley Biofuels has planning permission for a £47m oilseed rape processing plant on leased land at Vopak's bulk liquid storage terminal at Seal Sands.

MGT Power has announced a £400m investment at Teesport.

The Tees Renewable Energy Plant (REP) will create around 600 construction jobs and 150 on-site roles, as well as 300-400 jobs each year for the local supply chain.

Teesside is home to the UK's biggest biofuels plant - Biofuels Corporation's £45m facility at Seal Sands.

The company hopes to expand production from 250,000 tonnes a year to 600,000.