MP relays fears over Siemens’ Hull contract

Posted on 12 Sep 2011 by The Manufacturer

Labour MP for Hull Diana Johnson has called on government to ensure the wind turbine factory is still going ahead after the contract ran out in July this year.

The contract agreed by Siemens and Associated British Ports was signed in January this year but ran out in July, prompting fears over whether or not the German engineering group will choose to move the proposed factory elsewhere in Europe.

Siemens assured the Government that it was still committed to build the new factory in Hull, and released a statement confirming their intentions: “Siemens is continuing to work constructively with our preferred bidder Association British Ports for the planned construction of our new wind turbine factory in Hull. The negotiations on this major investment are ongoing and on track.”

Labour Hull MP Diana Johnson said: “I am encouraged by the statement [from Siemens] but of course over the recent months the discussions and development of the project has been going on.”

She added that while the government has shown promising action, “we need to get Siemens to actually sign on the bottom line and get the agreement that they are coming to Hull.”

Hull is the preferred site for the German industrial conglomerate because of its proximity to the proposed North Sea wind farms. The Office for Metropolitan Architecture, an international architectural partnership, has plans for a huge number of new wind turbines in the North Sea. While the new turbines will be centred around the coastline of Holland, they will span the coastlines of seven different countries.

George Archer