Celtic Freeport launch boosts growth and clean energy missions
Source: gov.uk (2025-03-13)

The Celtic Freeport has been officially launched bringing significant inward investment to South West Wales and thousands of new jobs a step closer.

Celtic Freeport, based at Milford Haven and Port Talbot, will help drive UK Government economic growth mission

Floating Offshore Wind in the Celtic Sea key to making a Britain a clean energy superpower by 2030

Plans will create more than 11,000 new jobs and add over £8 billion in economic value to the region.

The Celtic Freeport has been officially launched bringing significant inward investment to South West Wales and thousands of new jobs a step closer.

The freeport covers the ports at Milford Haven and Port Talbot and spans clean energy developments, fuel terminals, a power station, heavy engineering and the steel industry across South West Wales.

Within the freeport area businesses are offered significant UK Government and Welsh Government tax breaks and customs exemptions to encourage investment and growth. The Celtic Freeport is set to attract £8.4bn of private and public investment, deliver 11,500 new jobs and add £8.1bn of economic value (GVA) to the local economy.

The Celtic Freeport opened for business in November 2024 and will be supported by £26 million of UK Government investment, subject to approval of its full business case. It has now been officially launched at an event in Cardiff, attended by the Secretary of State for Wales Jo Stevens, and Rebecca Evans, Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Energy and Planning.

Secretary of State for Wales, Jo Stevens said:

This Government has a Plan for Change focused on delivering economic growth and ensuring that the UK is a renewable energy superpower. This announcement is a significant step towards achieving those ambitions.

The Celtic Freeport will create up to 11,500 well-paid, highly skilled jobs and could leverage up to £8.4bn in investment.

The UK Government and Welsh Government have provided a package of significant incentives, which will be supplemented by up to £26 million from the UK Government subject to approval of the Freeport’s business case. I am very pleased that we now have two governments working in partnership to deliver for people of Wales.

Rebecca Evans, Welsh Government Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Energy and Planning said:

The official opening of the Celtic Freeport sends another clear signal to the world that the industrial heartlands of South Wales are a vital cog in the growth and future prosperity of the UK’s low-carbon economy. We are already seeing a real appetite across the region and beyond to make the most of the skills and job opportunities that this new industrial age will provide.

The Welsh Government will be at Celtic’s side providing major tax reliefs to attract business investment, and the Freeport will be able to use future non-domestic rates revenues for vital infrastructure and skills projects which will benefit Port Talbot and Milford Haven for generations to come.

Following the success of the launch event, Luciana Ciubotariu, CEO of Celtic Freeport, said:

The Celtic Freeport is taking significant strides forward with key milestones secured such as the planning consents for the LanzaTech’s sustainable aviation fuel production plants and RWE’s Pembroke Green Hydrogen plant, the launch of the Milford Haven CO₂ Project, H2 Energy and Trafigura’s West Wales Hydrogen project securing a hydrogen CfD, Haush establishing a green energy HQ and their green hydrogen plant coming forward at Pembroke Dock and the approval of the wind turbine development to expand Dragon Energy’s Renewables Park.

These Celtic Freeport partner initiatives, coupled with investments in battery energy storage by RWE and port infrastructure at Port Talbot, are accelerating South Wales’ reindustrialisation and driving a decarbonised economy rich in evolving and new industries.

The Celtic Freeport’s vision is to create a green investment and innovation corridor that will drive inward investment, skills development, and national decarbonization. The freeport will support new manufacturing facilities and major port infrastructure upgrades to facilitate the roll-out of floating offshore wind (FLOW) in the Celtic Sea. It will also provide the backbone for a cleaner future based on the hydrogen economy, sustainable fuels, carbon capture and storage, cleaner steel, and low-carbon logistics.

The Celtic Freeport is one of 12 Freeports across Wales, England and Scotland. They will play a key part in the UK Government’s Growth Mission, helping reorientate the UK’s industrial heartlands to the green industries of the future and create thousands of high-quality jobs for local people.