NEWS
BUSINESS BITES
MERCIA ’ S £ 15M BOOST Mercia Asset Management – one of the UK ’ s most active venture capital providers – says it invested £ 15m in North-East businesses during 2022 , with several Tees firms benefiting .
Mercia backed 17 companies during the year , including Nova Pangaea of Redcar , which is developing sustainable aviation fuel , and Middlesbrough e-commerce software firm Salesfire .
Green light – Teesside Airport ’ s new aviation and jet centre has been approved .
£ 25M AVIATION VILLAGE APPROVED
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cutting-edge aircraft maintenance facility has been approved at Teesside International Airport , with the promise of hundreds of jobs .
Darlington Council ’ s planning committee backed the plans for a state-of-the-art jet centre and aviation village , led by Willis Lease Finance Corporation and its wholly owned subsidiary , Willis Aviation Services .
The £ 25m investment by Willis has the potential to bring 250 to 300 jobs to the region , with the aviation village set to include plans for five hangars for aircraft maintenance , repair and overhaul and painting operations , as well as a fixed base operation building for business aviation .
Councillors voted in favour of approving the vision , subject to planning conditions , at Darlington Town Hall .
Green light for Teesworks park and ride
A new Teesworks park and ride scheme to serve thousands of workers has been given the go-ahead , meaning building work can now accelerate .
The 35-acre site , located near the former SSI Steel House , Redcar , will see parking for more than 1,500 vehicles .
The hub will also host shuttle buses from the car park to Teesworks projects in a bid to keep congestion to a minimum , both on the site and the wider road network .
The car park will be used by workers as development ramps up on major projects , including Net Zero Teesside Power , which will create up to 5,500 jobs during its construction , and the SeAH Wind offshore wind monopile facility .
The site is bound by the former car park at the Steel House offices , north of the A1085 Trunk Road , and south of the Tees
Part of the 49-acre stretch west of the main terminal building was originally earmarked for 350 homes .
This area was bought in 2019 as part of a deal to bring the airport back into public ownership .
Tees Valley mayor Ben Houchen said : “ This decision marks another big step forward for our airport – and I ’ m delighted these vital plans have been backed .
“ I have always said that for our airport to truly flourish , it must be about more than just holiday flights – and we are delivering just that .
“ Willis is making a huge commitment to Teesside and today marks another great leap in securing our airport ’ s future .”
Plans – How Teesworks ’ park and ride scheme could look .
Valley railway line .
Electric vehicle charging points , cycle spaces , bus shelters and spaces for motorcycles are part of the plans .
Access would be via a new signalcontrolled junction off the A1085 – with a new slip road also provided as part of proposals .
Planning officials at Redcar and Cleveland Council had recommended the plans for approval ahead of the meeting .
SHAPING POLICY Creating the right environment for the Tees Valley to continue attracting business investment and create new jobs in the coming decades was top of the agenda when the government ’ s official advisers on infrastructure policy visited the region .
Tees Valley mayor Ben Houchen met advisers from the National Infrastructure Commission – with transport links , industrial networks for storing and transporting hydrogen and carbon , and clean energy generation all discussed in depth .
£ 4M ‘ URBAN QUARRY ’ Commissioning of Scott Bros ’ new £ 4m wash plant on Teesside is underway , with the “ urban quarry ” expected to be fully operational before the summer . The hi-tech wash plant near Teesworks , which will be capable of processing up to 300 tons of construction and excavation waste per hour and converting it into sustainably produced sand and aggregate , is one of the largest of its kind anywhere in the UK .
SECURITY FIRST FOR TEES Teesside Airport has beaten bigger airports to become the UK ’ s first to do away entirely with the 100ml limit on liquids when passing through airport security .
It is now easier and smoother than ever for passengers to fly from Teesside , as the previous 100ml threshold on liquid containers has been upped to two litres for hand luggage , thanks to two cutting-edge C3 scanners .
These high-tech scanners also remove the requirement for creams and cosmetics to be placed in separate bags and for laptops and other electronic items to be taken out ahead of scanning .
The voice of business in the Tees region | 19