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Birmingham Post
Birmingham Post
Business
Coreena Ford

North East deals of the week: key investments, contracts and acquisitions

Birtley business OES aims to make a global impact with its tech on the back of a six-figure investment.

The firm has developed an anti-corrosion system for offshore wind farms which offers a lower carbon footprint than existing solutions and is also technically superior and more cost-effective.

OES has won two major contracts for work on new offshore wind farms in the Baltic Sea and is starting pre-work on two further projects in the same area, along with other emerging schemes in the UK, US, Netherlands and Asia.

Its management team has worked with regional fund management firm NEL Fund Managers to bring in the £100,000 North East Small Loan Fund investment, which will help to provide the resources it needs to use its new system on more and bigger projects.

Read more: go here for more North East business news

The company, which recently moved to larger premises in Birtley as part of its growth strategy, is expecting to create up to ten jobs over the next six months as its operational needs develop and is also aiming to double its current annual turnover by the end of 2022.

WHP Engineering has secured a £2m investment to help it grow (WHP Engineering)

WHP Engineering is set to create 25 jobs on the back of new finance.

The Gateshead firm designs and builds cleanrooms, clean manufacturing solutions and complex process systems for the healthcare, life sciences and personal care cosmetics sectors, and the Gateshead firm has seen significant growth since it was backed by private equity investor Enact in 2016.

Now the firm has sealed the £2m finance facility from Secure Trust Bank Commercial Finance to support growth, following a rise in deals.

Alan Welby, from the North East LEP (Unknown)

More than £325,000 of Government funds has been allocated to a programme set to shine a light on emerging market opportunities in the North East.

The six-figure sum from the UK Community Renewal Fund has been awarded to the Future Markets Acceleration Programme, which will back projects projects across Gateshead and Sunderland.

It will focus on areas where the region has significant capabilities, including cyber security, electric vehicle battery materials and space technologies.

Sembcorp Energy UK (SEUK) has signed an exclusivity agreement with Alkemy Capital Investments plc (Gazette)

Plans to bring the UK's first lithium hydroxide plant to Teesside Freeport have taken a step forward.

Sembcorp Energy UK (SEUK) has signed an exclusivity agreement with Alkemy Capital Investments plc, whose wholly-owned subsidiary Tees Valley Lithium Ltd intends to build a processing plant at Wilton International.

The six-month exclusivity deal - worth £50,000 - means Tees Valley Lithium could establish a facility to process chemicals used in electric vehicles batteries, subject to a feasibility study and a formal lease for the 20-acre plot.

Alasdair MacDonald, CEO of Tekmar Group (Tekmar Group)

Offshore engineering group Tekmar says it is building a North East growth story, having raised £4m through a successful share placing.

The Darlington headquartered group - which also has facilities in Newton Aycliffe, Blyth, Newcastle, Montrose and Lowestoft - said the move was a huge vote of confidence from shareholders amidst geopolitical pressures on global markets.

Speaking to BusinessLive, Tekmar Group’s CEO Alasdair MacDonald - who personally invested £50,000 via the placing - said the company has now been positioned for growth in a global offshore wind market that’s worth an estimated £22bn.

Gateshead packaging manufacturer iPac has invested £713,000 and created 22 jobs to drive production of a new recycled plastic product.

The family run firm, which makes trays for the food and pharmaceuticals industries, has received a £200,000 capital investment grant from The Growth Fund, part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

It will support development of iPac's iCard product - a type of packaging made up of more than 85% recycled plastics, which in turn can be recycled unlike mixed material alternatives.

North East financial planning group Fairstone has announced a landmark 50th acquisition after snapping up an advisory firm based in Sidmouth.

The Boldon business has acquired East Devon Associates - a five-strong firm based in Sidmouth - in its third deal so far this year as well as helping it reach its 50th acquisition since starting its mission to add smaller firms to the company 10 years ago.

The company also said it had now reached £100m revenue.

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