Redcar & Cleveland

Dec 6 2007

REDCAR and Cleveland is one of the most diverse areas of our region.

From strong industrial roots of the steel and chemical industry to its beautiful coastline, seaside towns such as Saltburn and stunning countryside.

But work is going on across this contrasting mix of communities to make the borough better than ever.

The process sector is of huge importance to the borough and the Tees Valley.

Employing 14,000 people and making up a quarter of the region’s economy it has attracted more than £1.5bn of investment in recent years.

Far from an industry in decline, this sector is powering ahead.

Major investment is taking place in the sector - with the Wilton International site currently enjoying boom times.

In January 1946, ICI began the construction of what was known as the Wilton works.

For 50 years, this industrial giant was to dominate the economic well-being of the area.

Today the site is home to 5,000 staff, eight major companies, more than 80 contractors and produces chemicals for products we use day in, day out.

The chemical complex covers 2,000 acres - equivalent to 1,300 football pitches.

It also has 60 miles of private road, 400 miles of electric cable and 150 miles of pipe work.

UK company Sonhoe has named Wilton as the location for its £2bn crude oil refinery, which will bring major job generating opportunities for the Tees Valley.

Work has begun on the £250m Ensus 1 bioethanol plant at Wilton which is set to be operational in 2009.

Sabic is building a £200m polyethylene plant at the Wilton International site - the largest of its type in the world.

The company has also applied for planning permission for a new polypropylene plant at Wilton and hopes to secure £200m investment for Teesside.

And Ecco Newsprint is developing a £275m paper mill at Wilton.

Wilton is also home to The Centre for Process Innovation.
 
CPI was established by regional development agency One NorthEast to stimulate and drive innovation within the process industry.

The team is now leading the way on a number of key projects including the £12m National Industrial Biotechnology Facility and the £1.5m Fuel Cell Application Facility.

And the area’s long tradition of steel making continues.

Teesside’s steelworks - including sites at Redcar and Lackenby - employ 2,700 staff.

Indian giant Tata secured a £6.2bn acquisition of Anglo-Dutch company Corus in 2007.

Plans for Teesside’s first eco-park, which could create up to 500 jobs, have been outlined for Redcar and Cleveland.

About 20 companies could be based on a 53 - hectare former steelworks site in South Bank to be branded as the South Tees Eco-Park.

Newcastle-based Graphite Resources, which is set to develop almost half of the site, has submitted an outline planning application for the first phase of the scheme.

Graphite Resources plans to install its Proteus system where normal non-hazardous household and commercial waste is processed in a series of steam and pressure vessels.

That sterilises the material and either breaks it down or separates it into different types for recycling and re-use.

This waste is currently taken to landfill and for incineration locally, with little or none being recycled.

A civic amenities site is also being considered along with a building materials recycling facility.

Graphite Resources is also talking to other potential tenants who can benefit from the Proteus system or make use of the materials recovered.

The first phase of Graphite Resources’s project is expected to create about 130 jobs.

Phase two should create 250 jobs.

Kirkleatham Business Park continues to nurture new business and help established companies grow.

UK Steel Enterprise opened its multi-million pound business centre at the site in 2000.

Since then, the region’s first Innovation Centre has been substantially extended.

Investment is also being ploughed into one of the borough’s biggest employer.

Cleveland Potash has announced a massive £20m investment into major expansion plans at its Boulby potash mine.

Mine bosses say the huge investment will safeguard 1,000 workers jobs and the future of the mine for at least another 20 years, putting the firm at the forefront of the industry.

It will also benefit the prosperity of about 4,000 people in the surrounding area who depend on the mine, based near Loftus, for their jobs.

The funding will enable Cleveland Potash to develop exploration plans with its parent company ICL (Israel Chemicals Ltd) to extend mining operations for decades to come.

Plus there’s even more regeneration taking place in Redcar and Cleveland.

New homes, shops, a community centre and library are just some of the elements of the development scheme at the Courts Estate and nearby Roseberry Square Redcar’s Coatham regeneration project will bring new developments to the town.

And culture and arts aren’t forgotten in Redcar and Cleveland.

Tinseltown has well and truly been to Teesside with the filming of Hollywood blockbuster Atonement.

The movie includes a landmark Dunkirk scene which was shot on Redcar beach, costing £1m.