Chinese wind turbine maker to invest up to $2 billion in Scottish factory

By Susanna Twidale

LONDON (Reuters) -Chinese wind turbine manufacturer Ming Yang Smart Energy will invest up to 1.5 billion pounds ($2 billion) to build a wind turbine manufacturing facility in Scotland which could create up to 1,500 jobs, it said on Friday.

Britain is seeking to scale up renewable power to help meet its climate targets and also hopes to create thousands of clean energy jobs.

Ming Yang said the project would be built in three phases with the first a 750 million pound investment creating a facility to manufacture wind turbine blades and nacelles, with first production by late 2028.

The second phase would expand the facility so it can serve the floating offshore wind industry, the company said. Phase three would include manufacturing control systems, electronics and other key components.

"We firmly believe that by moving forward with our plans to create jobs, skills and a supply chain in the UK, we can make this country the global hub for offshore wind technology," Aman Wang, Ming Yang's UK CEO said in a press release.

The company said a number of sites have been chosen with Ardersier Port near Inverness its current preferred location.

The Chinese company last month signed an agreement with the country’s largest electricity supplier, Octopus, to explore opportunities for Octopus to use Ming Yang’s technology for some of its wind projects.

Use of Chinese renewable technology has proved controversial in Europe. Last year, the European Commission launched a review into Chinese turbine manufactures in response to industry concerns that cheaper imports could threaten the competitiveness of European firms.

Britain’s Energy Minister Ed Miliband visited China earlier this year to discuss climate and energy issues, and has said it would be negligent to not engage with China on climate issues.

($1 = 0.7488 pounds)

(Reporting By Susanna Twidale; Editing by David Gregorio)