News
ADVICE
AUSSIE ARRIVAL
Major fertiliser shipment lifts British agriculture
The nation ’ s farmers and consumers will benefit from the dawn of a new era in British agriculture this week , after one of the largest fertiliser vessels ever to visit the nation ’ s shores docked at Port of Sunderland .
The TORM AUSTRALIA , which could carry the Titanic in its hold , has brought much-needed nitrogen fertiliser from the Americas to the UK , reducing the nation ’ s reliance on fertilisers sourced from traditional domestic and near-continental suppliers that are in short supply .
The fertilisers will be stored at Brineflow ’ s new purpose-built , deep-water fertiliser terminal before being processed and delivered to directly to farms throughout the country .
John Fuller OBE , chairman of Brineflow , said : “ This is the first vessel to open up new global fertiliser markets for the UK and will
Welcome – Brineflow chairman John Fuller OBE ( left ) with Port of Sunderland director Matthew Hunt .
place Sunderland at the heart of the UK agricultural supply industry with the lowest environmental impact .
“ We are already planning subsequent voyages and exploring the onward shipping of this imported product to other destinations in the UK , including our sister facility in Great Yarmouth and even exporting to Europe by smaller ship tankers .”
The TORM AUSTRALIA will be the first of many giant tankers to dock at the port following the signing of a strategic joint venture between Brineflow and German agricultural giant HELM AG in November .
Carrying the Danish flag , the 183 metre long TORM AUSTRALIA was built in 2011 and boasts a carrying capacity of 49,999 tonne , making it one of the largest tanker ships to ever dock at the port , with three tugs needed to guide the vessel in and out of the port .
Planning permission granted for Quantafuel ’ s new plastics recycling plant
Planning permission has been granted for Quantafuel ’ s new plastics recycling plant in Sunderland – creating more than 100 jobs and processing plastic waste that is largely not recycled in the UK .
Quantafuel Sunderland – a subsidiary of Quantafuel , a specialist recycling company based in Norway – will build the plastics processing plant on a key 12-acre site on the eastern edge of Port of Sunderland .
The plant will take mixed plastic waste from across the north of England that would otherwise have been incinerated or disposed of in landfill .
Using pyrolysis technology , the materials will be heated in the absence of oxygen so they melt and break down into raw materials ( pyrolysis oils ) that can be used again in the manufacture of new products , including high-grade plastics .
It will be the first plant operated by Quantafuel in the UK to recycle plastics , which reduces C02 emissions by around 70 % compared to incineration .
Construction is expected to get underway later this year , with the plant opening in 2025 .
WHY FINANCIAL ADVICE IS KEY
The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association has recently released new figures it recommends will be needed to attain a minimum standard of living in retirement .
The figures are £ 10,900 after tax for a single person and £ 16,700 for a couple – and in my view these figures are too low .
I also provide financial advice through Citizens Advice and over the past 12 months , 21 per cent of clients accessing the help of the service were over 60 .
Of these , only around a third had either a mortgage or owned their home outright . The remaining 70 per cent were predominantly renting , something that is not taken into consideration in the minimum standards of living calculation .
A moderate standard of living has been assessed to require a budget of £ 20,800 for a single person and £ 30,600 for a couple .
According to the new findings , half of single employees are on course to retire with a lifestyle between minimum and moderate . In my view , a comfortable standard of living is £ 33,600 for one person and £ 49,700 for a couple and only one in six people are on the trajectory to achieve this standard of living .
So , you can see why there is a need for good financial advice from people with the right qualifications .
There is often a misconception only wealthy people have financial advisors . This is simply not true . I have many clients that are in jobs that would be classed as average income .
Hopefully more people will start accessing expert help , so that they can plan properly for a great retirement .
Kim Foster Financial adviser , Northern Spire
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