ENERGY giant Siemens has confirmed it is to build a £310 million offshore wind manufacturing site in Yorkshire creating thousands of jobs for the region.

The company is investing £160 million at Green Port Hull in Alexandra Dock, and at an 80-hectare rotor blade manufacturing facility near Paull.

Associated British Ports (ABP), which owns the dock, is investing £150 million in the ‘Green Port Hull’ development.

Following a joint bid from East Riding of Yorkshire Council and Hull City Council, which attracted £25.7 million from the Regional Growth Fund, support will be provided to small and medium sized enterprises and the local workforce to make the most of the economic opportunity.

Prime Minister David Cameron visited East Yorkshire yesterday to announce the £310 million investment, which will create up to 1,000 jobs directly, made up of 550 at the blade factory and 450 at Green Port Hull, with additional jobs during construction and indirectly in the supply chain.

Siemens and ABP will be submitting planning applications to Hull City Council and East Riding Council in coming months for revisions to the existing proposed schemes.

Green Port Hull is planned to be operational in early 2016. The start of production at the blade factory is scheduled for the middle of 2016 with full production levels reached from mid-2017 onwards.

East Riding of Yorkshire Council leader Stephen Parnaby , said: "It is an historic moment for the Humber region, certainly unrivalled in recent history.

“The wide scale economic benefits this investment will have for East Riding businesses cannot be over stated. It is also excellent news for East Riding residents with the development providing employment opportunities in an emerging sector."