http://www.energyefficiencynews.com/i/3213/

Able UK has unveiled plans to create a £400 million to transform the north east’s Humberside with a Marine Energy Park to support the UK’s burgeoning offshore wind industry.

The facility, which form part of plans for a major logistics centre and business park at Able’s Humber Port north of Immingham, would include over 1.5 km of deepwater quays and quayside areas suitable for the construction and installation of wind turbines.
Able Humber Port is one of the largest in the country, covering 1987 acres and a river front of over 2.5 miles. The company has already invested £50 million in developing the site and is awaiting a decision on the logistics centre and business park from local authorities.
“Able Humber Port offers an opportunity, unique in Europe, to provide all the facilities required for the manufacture, commissioning and installation base for offshore wind turbines,” says executive chairman Peter Stephenson.
It is in prime position to support the development of three offshore wind sites at Dogger Bank, Hornsea and Norfolk Bank, which Able UK estimates will require around 5000 turbines by 2020, which could mean 19 turbines being shipped every week from 2015 onwards.
The company is also considering developing a biomass energy generation facility at the site, which could supply electricity to up to 500,000 homes with fuel delivered to the quay.
The development could create up to 10,000 on-site jobs and a further 17,000 in the region, claims Stephenson.
The plans for the Marine Energy Park would have been considered by the Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC), but will now have to go through the Government’s new planning process.
The announcement has been welcomed by regional development agency Yorkshire Forward, which has been working to exploit the commercial opportunities of the Humber estuary for years.
“Yorkshire and Humber has a lot to offer the offshore wind sector,” says business director Simon Hill. “This development provides an excellent strategic fit with the needs of the offshore wind sector.”