Former Britishvolt site to house data centre development in £10bn plan
One of the world’s largest investment companies is set to take over the former Britishvolt site in Northumberland to create a series of data centres that will create hundreds of jobs.
American firm Blackstone and its data centre subsidiary QTS have reached agreement with Northumberland County Council and the owners of the land at Cambois, near Blyth, that should bring to an end a series of false dawns for the key regional employment site. If successful, the scheme could mark a £10bn investment into the North East.
It had been hoped that Britishvolt would build a gigafactory on the Northumberland Energy Park site to manufacture batteries for electric vehicles. But the 3,000-job plans foundered when the company went into administration last year. Attempts to revive the plans with Australian company Recharge Industries have also come to nothing.
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The land - the former coal yards of the old Blyth Power Station - is owned by former Britishvolt lender Katch Fund Solutions but Northumberland County Council has an option to buy back the key site to ensure that it is used to bring good quality jobs to the area. The council has agreed to amend that option in exchange for a £110m payment that will be earmarked for job creation schemes in the county, particularly the area around the new Northumberland rail line.
The switch to data centres is a significant change of proposed use for the site at Cambois, and signals a determination from the council to fulfill the employment potential of the site after the false dawns of the Britishvolt and Recharge schemes.
A data centre is a specialised facility equipped with computer servers, storage systems, networking infrastructure and security measures to securely store, manage and process digital data. These centres support various online services, applications and digital platforms.
Like the gigafactory plans, data centres need many of the factors that the site brings: a large, flat and cleared site; good sea, rail and road links; and access to large amounts of renewable energy. And though the initial number of jobs to be created will be lower in the data centres than the planned gigafactory, there are hopes that the development could boost the region’s digital economy and bring further benefits. Thousands of construction jobs are expected to be supported over a number of years.
The proposals will go to a meeting of the council’s cabinet next Tuesday.
Council leader Glen Sanderson said: “Driving growth and jobs is a key priority for this council. Next week, cabinet will consider this really unique opportunity for Northumberland which offers a huge boost to the regeneration and renaissance of the local area.
“The project would represent a significant inward investment of up to £10bn, putting our county at the forefront of developments in the digital economy, and delivering over 1,600 direct jobs, including 1,200 long-term construction jobs, and over 2,700 indirect jobs over the course of the development. If agreed, the council would receive up to £110m in exchange for amending the buy-back option on the NEP3 land site, and use the proceeds to establish a fund which will drive investment, including in the economic corridor along our fantastic, new Northumberland Line.
“Through the council’s investment company, Advance, we have worked tirelessly to make this site such an attractive place for global companies to do business. We look forward to considering this opportunity at cabinet next week.
“Northumberland is indeed a land of great opportunities and this potentially significant investment opportunity underlines this.”
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