Chinese wind turbine manufacturer Ming Yang Smart Energy will invest up to £1.5 billion ($2 billion) to build a wind turbine manufacturing facility in Scotland, which could create as many as 1,500 jobs, the company said on Friday.
Britain is seeking to scale up renewable power to meet its climate targets and aims to create thousands of clean energy jobs in the process.
Ming Yang said the project would be developed in three phases, with the first involving a £750 million investment to establish a facility that will manufacture wind turbine blades and nacelles, with production expected to begin by late 2028.
The second phase would expand the facility to serve the floating offshore wind industry, while phase three would focus on producing control systems, electronics, and other key components.
“We firmly believe that by moving forward with our plans to create jobs, skills, and a supply chain in the UK, we can make this country the global hub for offshore wind technology,” said Aman Wang, Ming Yang’s UK CEO, in a press release.
The company said several sites have been shortlisted, with Ardersier Port near Inverness currently its preferred location.
Last month, Ming Yang signed an agreement with Octopus, the UK’s largest electricity supplier, to explore the use of Ming Yang’s technology in some of Octopus’s wind projects.
The use of Chinese renewable technology has been controversial in Europe. Last year, the European Commission launched a review into Chinese turbine manufacturers following concerns that lower-cost imports could undermine the competitiveness of European firms.
Britain’s controversial Energy Minister Ed Miliband visited China earlier this year to discuss climate and energy cooperation, saying it would be “negligent” not to engage with China on climate issues.
(Reporting by Susanna Twidale; Editing by David Gregorio, Reuters)
