Local residents show support for Net Zero Teesside

REDCAR MP Anna Turley joined dozens of local residents from across Teesside to show their support for one of Britain’s biggest clean energy projects.

At a public meeting held at Redcar and Cleveland College, organised by campaign group Britain Remade, 60 people voiced support for the Net Zero Teesside project being built on the Teesworks site.

Once up and running it will be the world’s first industrial-scale carbon capture, utilisation, and storage facility.

It will generate up to 860 megawatts of low-carbon electricity – enough to power up to 1.3 million UK homes – while capturing up to two million tonnes of CO2 emissions each year that would otherwise be released into the atmosphere.

In February this year, the mammoth £4 billion project was given the green light by the then Energy Secretary. This was followed last month by the new government financially backing the scheme, unlocking 4,000 jobs during construction and operations.

Now, with these two major hurdles cleared, Britain Remade is urging ministers not to take their eyes off the ball when it comes to delivering an internationally significant project.

As part of the campaign, the group – which aims to reduce the time it takes to build job-creating infrastructure – brought together local people with MP for Redcar Anna Turley, Terry Walsh from the Materials Processing Institute and Jason Faulkner deputy CEO of the Education and Training Collective who run Redcar and Cleveland College.

Anna Turley said: “It is fantastic to see the new Labour government backing Teesside’s potential with the Net Zero Teesside project within just months of being in office.

“This investment, which will put communities like mine in Redcar and Cleveland at the forefront of Britain’s green energy transition, is not just about clean energy – it’s about creating thousands of good, local jobs and ensuring that Teesside and our young people, in particular, play a leading role in transforming Britain into a clean energy superpower.

“I’m proud to stand alongside local residents, businesses, and campaigners to ensure that Teesside leads the way in this new, high-tech, green economy.

“The Net Zero Teesside project is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to drive jobs, investment, and environmental progress for our region, so making sure local people feel the impact of this investment is paramount.”

Sam Richards, CEO of Britain Remade, said: “Teesside led the way in the Industrial Revolution of the 19th century, and now it’s leading the way in the Green Industrial Revolution of the 21st century.

“The scale of the project is just mind-blowing and so will its impact, not just in Teesside or the UK but around the world. 

“From the developers and the Mayor to the men and women on the ground, the transformation of the former Redcar Steelworks into a major centre for clean energy has taken a herculean effort from all involved. 

“But far too often, critical projects like Net Zero Teesside take significantly longer than necessary to get approval from the Government and are caught up in frivolous Judicial Reviews. Not only does this mean it takes longer to get spades in the ground and for communities like Redcar to benefit from the jobs these projects bring, it also means energy bills remain higher for longer.”