A £15 million government grant will help the Humber become a world-class centre for renewable energy industries that employs thousands of people.

Communities Secretary Eric Pickles announced the funding during a visit to see first-hand work get underway on the Able Marine Energy Park based on the Humber Enterprise Zone.

The £450 million Park project will provide a facility for the manufacture, storage, assembly and deployment of the next generation of offshore wind turbines near Immingham.

The project will create more than 4,100 direct jobs and will let the Humber grow as a leading centre for renewable energy. Building work on the site will create around 350 full-time construction jobs.

Communities Secretary Eric Pickles said:

“With the majority of the North Sea’s offshore operations thriving side-by-side, the Humber is becoming, quite literally, a powerhouse in the British economy and is a vital part of our long-term economic plan to help secure a better future by spreading businesses, jobs and skills across the country.

“The cash injection to Able Marine Energy Park site ensures it becomes a strong, competitive part of this growing renewable energy hub, attracting new businesses and creating jobs for hardworking local people.”

During his visit to the Humber the Secretary of State also officially opened E.ON’s Humber Gateway offshore wind farm operations and maintenance base.

The base site in Grimsby will support the operation and maintenance of the energy firm’s offshore wind farm once fully operational.

Work on the Humber Gateway wind farm – located 8 kilometres off the Holderness coast, East Riding of Yorkshire – is well underway. The wind farm will have 73 turbines when complete with 61 of the foundations already installed. Installation of the first wind turbine got underway last week.

More than 300 jobs have already been created at the site and this will rise to 1,100 once all the wind farms are constructed and operating.