Monday, December 24, 2007
2007 was a year of progress - and 2008 will be the same
24 December 2007
Evening Gazette
THE pace of change has accelerated across the Tees Valley in 2007.
Major investment and regeneration have continued at schemes right around the region. And 2008 looks set to be a year of even more development.
The region's process sector is in line for huge investment - with major projects already under construction or in the pipeline.
In 2007 the Evening Gazette launched its Pride In Our Process Industry initiative - as part of the Tees Pride campaign - which will continue in 2008 as the sector develops.
To meet this demand, it's vital for the Tees Valley to plough energy and investment into developing skills and training.
The National Skills Academy for the process industries, which was recently announced for Teesside, will drive forward this ambition in 2008.
We should also see progress being made at the area's key regeneration projects - Middlehaven at Middlesbrough, North Shore at Stockton, Hartlepool's Victoria Harbour, Durham Tees Valley Airport and Darlington's Central Park.
Plus PD Ports' ambitions for a £300m deep sea container terminal will hopefully be given the green light from the Government - making it a year of development on the Tees.
But what about 2007?
Here are some highlights from the last 12 months.
JANUARY
The year got off to a spectacular start with the opening of the Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art. Mima, which cost more than £14m, put the town on the arts and culture map and was a clear sign of Tees Valley's world-class ambitions when it comes to regeneration.
Indian conglomerate Tata Steel won the battle for Corus, which employs 2,900 on Teesside. Tata's knock-out bid of £6.08-a-share saw off Brazilian rival CSN. The deal, which valued Corus at £6.7bn, is the largest ever overseas takeover by an Indian firm.
It was announced that a new centre to encourage the development of small companies in digital industries was set to be built in Middlesbrough. The centre is a key element of the Digital City initiative, spearheaded by Middlesbrough Council and Teesside University. The digital enterprise centre, which will cost around £8m, will be located in the Boho Zone - the part of Middlesbrough earmarked as an area for creative industries.
FEBRUARY
A deal to bring a huge investment to transform Stockton's North Shore site was signed. Two leading companies - AMEC and Urban Splash - agreed to bring about a development that will include homes, offices, leisure facilities, a hotel, and university facilities. Overall, £300m of public and private sector cash is being invested and around 2,500 jobs could be created on the site, which is a flagship scheme of Tees Valley Regeneration.
Teesport's new £40m Teesside GasPort project was officially opened. And the region's ability to embrace cutting-edge innovation was praised by a Government minister. The site, which is the world's first dockside regasification port, was visited by the then Trade and Industry Secretary Alistair Darling, who also applauded the region's can-do approach to business. Excelerate Energy revealed plans last year to import natural gas supplies direct to Teesside at Teesport. The company has now seen the arrival of the first liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargo on the Tees. Traditionally, LNG ships must deliver their cargo as liquid to onshore terminals, which then convert it to gas.
Stockton-based Aker Kvaerner Engineering Services confirmed a move to new purpose-built premises. It said it would move from its current home on Richardson Road to a new headquarters just a mile away at The Surtees Business Park on Bowesfield Lane in the new year - providing space for around 440 staff.
MARCH
Hundreds of people gathered to learn who had been declared the leading lights in the Tees Valley business community. Beer monitoring equipment firm Brulines of Stockton was crowned Company of the Year at the Tees Valley Business Awards.
And RS Industrial Services, a crane maintenance and repair outfit, scooped two awards - Small Business and Services.
In total 11 accolades were presented at the event, organised by the Evening Gazette and its sister paper, The Journal, on Tyneside.
SembCorp Utilities UK said it was to invest £36m in a heat and power plant project to enhance its supply of utilities at the Wilton International site.
APRIL
PD Ports' plans for a £300m Teesside deep sea container terminal, which could bring 5,500 jobs to the area, were given the green light locally.
Redcar and Cleveland planning committee unanimously gave outline approval to the scheme - which could be up and running in 2009 if given Government approval.
MAY
The stunning shape of things to come on Middlesbrough's Middlehaven site was revealed. Detailed plans for the first two buildings to be constructed in the £200m development by Bio Regional Quintain were unveiled for the first time. Both provided wow-factor designs by architects with worldwide reputations. One of the two buildings is by internationally renowned architect Will Alsop - the man behind the original Middlehaven vision contained in the masterplan. The second building is by award winning architects FAT.
A trio of Tees Valley companies proved to be regional champions as they scooped three of the honours at the North East Business Awards. The best of the area's commercial crop were Citrox, Middlesbrough, R S Industrial Services, Billingham, and 3M UK, of Newton Aycliffe.
Work got underway on a new Teesside green fuel plant. Ensus is developing the £250m bioethanol plant at Wilton.
JUNE
Stockton-based award winning pub equipment company Brulines is investing £3m in new Teesside offices, which will provide space to double its Teesside workforce to 200.
The firm is relocating its head office from Preston Farm Business Park to nearby Surtees Business Park. James Dickson, chief executive, said the move to new 15,400sq ft offices would be made by the end of the year.
JULY
Teesside manufacturer F Jones Cleveland, a marble and granite specialist, neared completion of phase three of a £5.2m investment programme. The firm has invested in a substantial factory expansion, which will see at least 15 jobs created in the next 12 months, adding to its 35-strong workforce. The Riverside Park company increased its floor space by 70% to 50,000sq ft and added an additional office and staff facilities.
Cleveland Potash mine workers celebrated news of a near £2m investment, safeguarding 1,000 jobs and the future of the mine for at least 20 years. The cash will be used to help access untapped resources at Europe's deepest mine at Boulby, near Loftus
A £12m centre, which will put Teesside on the worldwide map, was officially opened.
The National Industrial Biotechnology Facility, at the Centre for Process Innovation at Wilton, will transform the way vital chemicals used to make millions of everyday products are manufactured.
The construction of the new Middlesbrough College at Middlehaven marked a milestone with a topping out ceremony. The building of the £68m campus, which is due to open in September 2008, reached its highest point.
AUGUST
One of the most famous names in British industry fell into foreign hands after Dulux paint maker ICI agreed an £8bn takeover offer from Dutch rival Akzo Nobel. The deal, due to be completed in January, will end more than 80 years of British ownership for ICI which was first founded in 1926 through the merger of four chemical companies.
SEPTEMBER
North-east-based mortgage lender Northern Rock agreed emergency financial funding from the Bank of England. The UK's fifth biggest mortgage lender turned to the Bank as the "lender of last resort" after difficulties raising cash from commercial markets.
OCTOBER
A £2bn black gold bonanza was announced for Teesside. Sonhoe announced plans for a ground-breaking project to process heavy crude oil at Wilton. The project represents the biggest single industry investment on Teesside and will be the first specialist plant of its type in Northern Europe. Hundreds of permanent jobs and thousands of construction jobs will be created.
Able UK was finally given the go-ahead to dismantle the "ghost ships" on Teesside.
NOVEMBER
There was fantastic news for industry and education as it was announced a National Skills Academy for the process industries was to be based on Teesside. The University of Teesside will provide the base for the academy. The £10m organisation aims to deliver up to 8,000 extra NVQ qualifications and train an extra 800-900 apprentices
A £30m development creating 500 jobs was unveiled at the gateway to Middlesbrough's Middlehaven site. Teesside developers Terrace Hill put forward the proposals for the area once earmarked for an Asda superstore. A development of retail, leisure and recreation facilities is planned to revitalise the 16 acre site. The announcement coincided with news of a proposed £7m business village for Stockton at Portrack Lane.
A £50m import centre creating more than 800 jobs was announced for Teesside. Owner PD Ports submitted a planning application for a 1.2 million sq ft regional import centre for a major UK retailer at its Tees Dock site in Redcar.
A £60m wood-burning power station - the first of its kind in the UK - was officially opened on Teesside. SembCorp's biomass power station will save around 200,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions a year compared with a conventional power station - reducing as much greenhouse gas each year as taking 67,000 cars off the road. The power station, based at Wilton, has created 15 permanent jobs and sustained 1,000 during construction.
PD Ports celebrated steel exports from Corus breaking through the two million tonnes barrier for the first time.
The Centre for Process Innovation, (CPI) based at Wilton, designed a ground-breaking environmentally-friendly fuel cell to power a lighthouse. The historic South Gare lighthouse at the mouth of the River Tees leads to one of the busiest ports in the UK and was thought too exposed to use a fuel cell. But CPI has worked with its partners to develop the innovation, which can operate in some of the harshest weather conditions.
James Dickson, chief executive of Brulines, has been named Tees Valley winner at the North East Business Executive of the Year Awards.
DECEMBER
Plans were announced for an eco-village of 2,000 environmentally-friendly homes at Wynyard Park. The project would be in addition to plans announced by Wynyard Park Ltd last month for £450m of investment in three million square feet of office space, designed to anticipate demand at the site over the next 15 to 20 years and creating 10,000 jobs. The £450m plans were given the green light in November.
The Evening Gazette celebrated an investment of almost £2m at its Borough Road offices. Work was completed to transform the original 1930s offices in the heart of the town into a modern state-of-the-art development for the multi-media business.
