May hails boosts to UK's industrial strategy
Inward investment into the UK is boosted by Airbus and Eutelsat orders. Plus, Equinix's total investment this financial year of £295 million is a "vote of confidence" in London's future as a premier financial hub.
20 November 2018The UK government's Industrial Strategy has received a double boost with European orders being received for communications satellite components and an announcement of a major expansion of offshore wind blade expansion.
Mr Hammond also said the National Productivity Investment Fund would be further increased to more than £38 billion by 2023-2024.Following the announcement of the satellite component contracts, Business Secretary Greg Clark hailed it as a "significant vote of confidence" for the UK's space industry.A spokesman for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) said, "The deal, worth hundreds of millions of pounds, between Eutelsat, one of the world's top three providers of TV broadcast signals, and Airbus is a huge vote of confidence in the UK expertise in the space industry, benefiting 500 high-skilled workers involved in Eutelsat projects."The components will be made in the UK and then shipped to Toulouse for final assembly.Expansion of manufacturing offshore wind blades at MHI Vestas will begin at the start of 2019 with the move leading to the creation of 380 jobs at the Isle of Wight factory and an estimated 720 positions in the supply chain and the local economy.An analysis by BVG Associates for the firm also calculated the production increase would eventually produce a £42 million-a-year boost to the regional economy.Julian Brown, UK country manager at MHI Vestas, said, "Among all the uncertainty these days, it's quite a remarkable image: a massive blade mould comes into the UK with hundreds of new employees readying themselves for years of serial production."It's offshore wind at its finest, actually - large-scale manufacturing, sustainable jobs, considerable economic benefit to local communities, and a green energy source driving the UK toward a carbon-free future."Minister for Energy Claire Perry said, "The UK is the global home of offshore wind, housing the world's largest offshore wind farm, with over six per cent of our home-grown electricity coming from clean wind power."Relocate’s new Global Mobility Toolkit provides free information, practical advice and support for HR, global mobility managers and global teams operating overseas.
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Airbus and Eutelsat to expand UK operations
Airbus and Eutelsat announced the order on Monday to manufacture satellite components at sites in Portsmouth and Stevenage in a deal said to be worth hundreds of millions of pounds.Meanwhile, the expansion of manufacturing offshore wind blades at MHI Vestas on the Isle of Wight was announced on Tuesday in a move predicted to create more than a thousand jobs directly at the factory and in the supply chain.Equinix's total UK investment: £295 million - a "vote of confidence" in London's future as premier financial hub
Prime Minister Theresa May, in a speech to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) annual conference this week, also revealed that Equinix was to invest a further £90 million in a new data centre to service growing demand for digital financial services in the City of London.Mrs May said Equinix's total UK investment in this financial year stood at £295 million, which she described as "a vote of confidence in (London's) future as the world’s premier financial hub".The prime minister added, "When I first became prime minister I immediately identified the need for government to step up and be much more engaged in shaping our economy to be ready for the challenges of the future – and so we set about developing our new Modern Industrial Strategy."At a time of great change and technological transformation as we pass through a fourth industrial revolution governments have to think and act strategically, in partnership with business, to strengthen the foundations of productivity and build up our comparative advantages."That means investment in our traditional physical infrastructure – roads, rail, air, and now also broadband and this government is doing that with record investment."But for the UK it is also about our knowledge infrastructure and our human talent too. So I want to harness the power and expertise of businesses to transform our skills base and drive up our productivity in the years ahead."Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond announces an additional £1.6 billion for R&D
In his Autumn Budget last month, Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond announced that R&D would receive an additional £1.6 billion of funding while the Industrial Strategies Challenge Fund, which aims to support technologies of the future, will receive a £1.1 billion investment.Subscribe to our free newsletter, Relocate Extra, for your monthly dose of the latest business and global mobility news.
Mr Hammond also said the National Productivity Investment Fund would be further increased to more than £38 billion by 2023-2024.Following the announcement of the satellite component contracts, Business Secretary Greg Clark hailed it as a "significant vote of confidence" for the UK's space industry.A spokesman for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) said, "The deal, worth hundreds of millions of pounds, between Eutelsat, one of the world's top three providers of TV broadcast signals, and Airbus is a huge vote of confidence in the UK expertise in the space industry, benefiting 500 high-skilled workers involved in Eutelsat projects."The components will be made in the UK and then shipped to Toulouse for final assembly.Expansion of manufacturing offshore wind blades at MHI Vestas will begin at the start of 2019 with the move leading to the creation of 380 jobs at the Isle of Wight factory and an estimated 720 positions in the supply chain and the local economy.An analysis by BVG Associates for the firm also calculated the production increase would eventually produce a £42 million-a-year boost to the regional economy.Julian Brown, UK country manager at MHI Vestas, said, "Among all the uncertainty these days, it's quite a remarkable image: a massive blade mould comes into the UK with hundreds of new employees readying themselves for years of serial production."It's offshore wind at its finest, actually - large-scale manufacturing, sustainable jobs, considerable economic benefit to local communities, and a green energy source driving the UK toward a carbon-free future."Minister for Energy Claire Perry said, "The UK is the global home of offshore wind, housing the world's largest offshore wind farm, with over six per cent of our home-grown electricity coming from clean wind power."Relocate’s new Global Mobility Toolkit provides free information, practical advice and support for HR, global mobility managers and global teams operating overseas.
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