A UK fund has acquired Nissan's latest solar power project in a £10.6m deal that will see the car maker purchase power generated over a 20-year agreement.
Atrato Onsite Energy, a specialist fund set up last year to focus on rooftop solar power installations, announced the deal to its shareholders saying it would take over the building of 20MW ground-mounted system that will eventually comprise about 37,000 solar panels. The project is a major part of Nissan's EV36Zero strategy to ramp up production of electric vehicles and is expected to create about 20% of the power needed for the Sunderland plant.
This latest deal will see Atrato - which uses the stock symbol ROOF and trades on the London Stock Exchange - complete the installation next to the Sunderland plant and then sell power generated to the manufacturer on a 100% take-or-pay basis.
Durham technology company Plexus Innovation has raised a further £480,000 to help it expand into new markets.
Plexus Innovation has developed Guardian, a remote, automated alert system for care homes and social housing providers, which helps them with important compliance issues and reporting.
Guardian focuses on environmental data, including temperature, and is already being used by clients in sectors such as social housing, education, health and care, with clients including believe housing, North Star Housing Group and Careline Lifestyles. Plexus Innovation has secured £300,000 investment from the North East Venture Fund (NEVF), supported by the European Regional Development Fund and managed by Mercia; and £180,000 from the Finance Durham Fund, managed by Maven Capital Partners, established by Durham County Council and overseen by Business Durham.
An offshore business is aiming to make waves in the burgeoning US market after securing investment. Green Marine Solutions, based in Sunderland, specialises in coordinating all the logistical aspects of offshore operations, including personnel and vessels, communications systems, software and maritime surveillance.
The firm works with clients in the offshore wind industry and has already been involved with high profile projects in South America and mainland Europe, as well as off the North East and East Anglian coasts.
Now it is set to use a £50,000 Small Loan Fund investment, secured with help from NEL Fund Managers, to establish a presence in the US offshore wind sector. The company, which counts energy businesses including EDF, SSE Renewables and Siemens among its clients, is also expecting to create a number of new jobs through the growth of the business, which could see it break through the £2m turnover barrier for the first time this year.
Lockheed Martin has launched a collaboration with a North East university kickstarted by a £630,000 investment to support the development of skills, research and technology across the region.
The global aerospace and security company has teamed up with Northumbria University, which is a leading authority in space and solar physics research, having invested heavily in facilities and experts within the field. The firm has plans to expand its manufacturing space operations in the UK and is exploring options to establish a new research, development and manufacturing facility which would support up to 2,300 jobs in the region.
The company’s £630,000 investment forms part of a wider £7m investment into engineering facilities for research and teaching at Northumbria, which is funded by the Office for Students, the UK Space Agency and the Newcastle based university. The investment aims to make the university and wider region a leader in the global space economy, supporting new research, developing innovative technologies and generating skills in the growing sector.
CEO Paul Livingston said: “Our plans will grow the UK as a space nation, help it become a science and technology superpower, and contribute to levelling up the economy.”
Hospitality company The Doxford Group is creating a new hotel after securing a £5.7m finance package to help put growth plans into action.
The Doxford Group currently owns and operates weddings, events and overnight stays from its two venues near Alnwick, Northumberland, the Charlton Hall Estate and Doxford Barns. Now the Charlton Hall Estate is set to expand with a new 15-bedroom hotel, restaurant and bar, which is planned to open early next year as part of plans to boost existing services and create a destination estate within the area, thanks to the funding deal from Natwest.
Doxford Barns, which was opened in 2017, will also be expanded with the addition of seven new bedrooms, a bridal boutique with access to the ceremony room and an event reception area. The development will start later this year.
Waste management innovator Impact Recycling has received further investment from IW Capital to complete a new site in Glasgow, and "accelerate growth".
The Wallsend-based business first gained IW's backing in 2019 when the private equity house injected £2m to support Impact's new methods of plastic recycling. The BOSS (baffled oscillation separation system) technology is a water-based, density separation process that can sort plastics, diverting significant quantities of polyethylene and polypropylene from landfill and incineration.
Instead, Impact can transform those plastics into a reusable form which is sold to manufacturers as a resin for reuse in goods and packaging. IW Capital’s initial 2019 investment into Impact Recycling was targeted at developing the BOSS technology and developing two sites in Newcastle, which are now operational.
The company with plans to launch the UK's first lithium hydroxide plant at Teesside Freeport has moved closer to signing a key supply deal with raw materials trader Traxys.
Tees Valley Lithium (TVL), which is owned by Alkemy Capital Investments, revealed the news to shareholders saying the feedstock memorandum of understanding would see Traxys supply the first production line - or 'Train 1' - of TVL's factory which is due to be operational in 2024 and producing 24,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) of battery-grade lithium hydroxide for gigafactories around Europe. It marks a significant step on the way to realising TVL's plans, which will eventually see it produce 96,000tpa - an estimated 15% of Europe's projected demand - once all four production trains are up and running.
Sam Quinn, Alkemy and TVL director, said: "We are delighted to be partnering with leading global metals trader Traxys who will supply TVL with the lithium feedstock required for TVL to become Europe's largest and lowest-carbon lithium hydroxide producer, located at the Wilton International Chemicals Park in Teesside, UK. Utilising a state-of-the-art electrochemical process route and powered by low-cost green energy, TVL will be supplying the UK and Europe with 96,000tpa of low carbon, battery-grade lithium hydroxide - the equivalent to 15% of European demand.
Six-figure investment into door manufacturer Conduit Construction Network Ltd (CCN) has seen the firm expand into new premises and create jobs.
A £600,000 funding package from the Finance Durham Fund, managed by Maven Capital Partners and established by Durham County Council, has allowed CCN, which had employed about 80 people, to relocate from South Shields into a 54,500 sqft facility at Belmont Industrial Estate. The move also comes with the creation of 30 new jobs at the family business which supplies doors and screens to a range of sectors including health and education.
Significant capacity has been added to CCN's operation in Durham and investors said the package had been used to fit out the new factory as well as purchase new machinery. The investment will also allow for an expanded product range and faster, more efficient manufacturing resulting in shortened lead times.
American defence giant Raytheon has acquired a 22-strong space technology company based in Alnwick, in an undisclosed deal.
The UK arm of the aerospace and defence multinational said it intends to buy Northern Space and Security Ltd, or NORSS, in a move the start-up's founder says will facilitate expansion. RAF veteran Ralph Dinsley founded the firm - which delivers orbital analyst technical services to the MoD - five years ago.
Since then it has grown, and earlier this year secured a contract with UK Space Command worth nearly £1m to develop a new simulator system for testing future British satellite launches. Mr Dinsley said the deal with Raytheon UK would facilitate expansion of the Northumberland firm given access to new international markets.
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