THMA Chairman’s Letter – December 2018
Dear Members, Colleagues and Partners
Another year flies by and indeed so much so that January will see me reach a personal milestone of 10 years working with THMA!
I’m lucky enough to have been involved with the organisation during a hugely transformative period for the Humber region that has sparked unprecedented collaboration between local government, business and academia.
This past year has seen many of the regions long term projects across the Maritime and Offshore sector come to fruition and we are delighted that THMA and its members have played a vital part.
Our move to the ERGO centre has proved a success especially working with industry partners such as Green Port Growth, Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult and AURA. It has also allowed easier access for our members from around the Humber and indeed new “networking” initiatives such as ONBOARD! have been a resounding success.
The last three months have been incredibly busy with Maritime UK Cluster meetings in Southampton, outward missions to the Netherlands and USA as well as welcoming inward delegations from China. Our resources have been stretched to the very limit and I’d like to thank our Vice Chair Camilla Carlbom and Advisory Board member Andrew Oliver for supporting us at some of these important activities.
Future Northern Maritime activities are expected to see renewed growth as users of congested southern ports seek alternatives with the Humber best placed to maximise on this opportunity. The Humber ports have seen improved container traffic and Immingham has seen volumes rise from 68,000 in 2013 to 182,000 in 2017. This will increase further as rail upgrades funded by the Humber LEP will allow “High cube” container wagons to operate from Immingham to the East Coast mainline. North Lincolnshire Council have recognised this increasing demand and have included a new “5th” port as part of their economic strategy.
Meanwhile the Offshore Wind sector continues to grow apace as we start to see the construction of the worlds largest wind farm “Hornsea Project One” from Green Port Hull starting in January 2019. Last month we attended the supply chain event in Rotherham for “Hornsea Project Two” which laid out the large array of opportunities open to our members. The Hornsea Project Three is also in development and will be on the horizon very soon.
Last week the Crown Estate also announced that it was looking to open up “Round Four” sites for development opening up a pipeline that will keep the Humber at the centre of the industry for many years to come.
THMA has also made a modest contribution to the Governments Offshore Wind industrial strategy and we look forward hopefully to a sector deal that will unlock future investments and support for the Humber region.
As the year comes to a close I’d to thank you all our members and partners for your continued support during the year and we look forward to working with you in 2019.
On behalf of the THMA team and Board of Directors I’d like to wish you a very Merry Christmas and a peaceful and prosperous New Year.
Kind regards
Mark