First phase of River Tees deep water quay complete

The quay will help serve SeAH Wind’s monopile manufacturing facility

A £114m deep water quay on the River Tees is set to be up and running this summer, according to developers.

It is part of the first phase of the South Bank heavy lift quay at Teesworks, which has taken two years to construct and is 450m-long (1,476ft).

The quay will serve South Korean firm SeAH Wind’s £450m manufacturing facility, allowing monopiles to be shipped out to North Sea offshore wind farms.

Tees Valley mayor Ben Houchen has promised huge investment and jobs, while Labour MP Andy McDonald has called for a National Audit Office inquiry into how the site has been funded.

An independent review of Teesworks - on the site of the former Redcar steelworks - said private developers put no money into the scheme, but made money on the back of public sector investment of more than £560m.

Conservative peer Lord Houchen said work could not have been possible without joint venture partners.

Mr McDonald said the latest projects were “in themselves most welcome”, but the arrangements had come at the expense of the taxpayer.

The report found no evidence of wrongdoing, but criticised a lack of transparency.

'Significant interest'

Teesworks said about £114m had been invested in the quay on the back of a UK Infrastructure Bank loan, which they said would be repaid in full by the Tees Valley Combined Authority.

They added negotiations were under way with a potential operator, along with plans for a second phase which could lengthen the quay by up to 300m (984ft), the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Operations director Garry O’Malley said: “There’s a real shortage of ports on the east coast which have deep water capabilities and large areas of land for storing and marshalling offshore wind farm components before they are shipped out for installation."

Teesworks CEO Martin Corney said there had been "a significant amount of interest from global companies" on the back of the progress at the quay.

"The end of building work means we’re a big step closer to having direct riverside access to Teesworks and a vital route to the North Sea," he added.