A steel site in North Wales has the potential to be part of major energy and infrastructure developments across the UK.
Tata Steel in Shotton is already home to hundreds of workers producing building systems.
But there is the opportunity to utilise the spare land and its road, rail and sea links to bring even more skilled work to the site.
Economy minister Ken Skates received an update recently from the plant. He said: “I was pleased to receive a comprehensive briefing from Bill Duckworth, the excellent site manager at Tata in Shotton, and also from Andy Silcox, who brilliantly runs the AMRC at Broughton.
“And I learned that there is not only potential for Tata Shotton to host a Heathrow logistics hub, but also a logistics hub for floating offshore wind industries and possibly for off-site modular housing - incredibly exciting programmes.”
A Tata Steel spokesperson said: “Our Shotton site in North Wales already produces the best building system products available and would make an ideal choice for a logistics hub or off-site construction base for the ambitious infrastructure projects being talked about.
“We have the land available, the road, rail and sea links to the rest of the UK required to support major projects such as these. We also have a strong belief our inclusion would have a positive impact on the economies of both Wales and the rest of the UK.”
Talking about other developments in north east Wales, Mr Skates added: “Also, we know that the Northern Gateway is one of the most attractive development sites in north Wales at the moment.
“I’m optimistic about being able to say something positive in the near future concerning job creation, and what we’re doing there complements what we’re investing in across North Wales.
“We are investing across the region, creating jobs in record numbers, and we have a pandemic to overcome, but we are confident that, by working as a partner to local authorities, we have the strongest team in North Wales to overcome this challenge.”
