Port's 'green' terminal aims to create 12,000 jobs

The redevelopment at Port of Tyne will include a 400m (1,312ft) deep-water quayside

A plan to build a new port terminal focused on the green energy sector could create up to 12,000 jobs, it has been claimed.

The Port of Tyne plans to spend £150m turning a 230-acre (93ha) site in North and South Shields into the Tyne Clean Energy Park.

It has been designed as a hub for offshore renewables, clean energy and advanced manufacturing. CEO Matt Beeton said bolstering the three sectors was a "national priority" and required "decisive action".

The project would see the north and south banks of the port redeveloped along with the addition of a 400m (1,312ft) deep-water quayside.

The park's size and location near North Sea wind arrays meant it would enable the creation of "world-class infrastructure to support a growing supply chain", Mr Beeton said.

Tyne Clean Energy Park will focus on the renewable energy, offshore wind and advance manufacturing sectors

Tyne Clean Energy Park will sit within an Industrial Strategy Zone, which provides similar benefits to freeports.

These include reliefs for business rates and stamp duty land tax, as well as enhanced capital allowances.

The port has already invested £6m in the first phase of its redevelopment, which saw a dedicated berth and a 23,000sq ft (2,137sq m) warehouse built at Howdon Quay.

North East Mayor Kim McGuinness said the port's expansion would help make north-east England "the home of the green energy revolution".

"The potential for the site is huge," she said.

"It could generate thousands of clean energy jobs which will benefit the region in the long-term and further establish a real hub for renewables and offshore sectors on the bank of the Tyne."