Plans for a rare earth metal processing plant at Saltend have been abandoned, as the company behind the project has decided not to proceed, according to Government confirmation.
The facility would have processed materials for magnets used in renewable energy production.
Pensana had intended to establish the facility at the Saltend Chemicals Park, near Hull, which would process rare earth metals from deposits in Angola, southern Africa. The development was expected to generate more than a hundred jobs in the region.
However, a spokesperson for the Department for Work and Pensions confirmed that the plans will not be moving forward, stating: "It is disappointing Pensana has decided not to proceed with this development, but it is ultimately a commercial decision for the company. We will publish a new Critical Minerals Strategy soon to help secure our supply chains for the long term, and we're reducing industrial electricity costs for businesses as part of our modern Industrial Strategy."
Shortly after planning permission for the project was granted in 2022, the then Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng initiated work on the site. He stated at the time: "Supporting a company like Pensana, that refines critical minerals used in magnets for electric vehicles is really important. What Pensana does for electric vehicles is critical, and all the things we use in the modern world depend on this type of work.", reports .
"China has a lead on critical minerals, which it feeds into the supply chain for electric vehicles, mobile phones, things we use all the time – even fighter jets. We will provide a critical minerals strategy to make sure we can produce more of these here, so we can have resilience.
"It is all about reindustrialising, bringing skills and well-paid jobs to the Humber, and other areas, something we are very focused on. It is high-skill, high-wage employment and that's really exciting."
The announcement of Pensana abandoning the plans follows closely on the heels of the closure of Saltend's Vivergo Fuels, the º£½ÇÊÓƵ's largest bioethanol producer. Similarly, petrochemicals behemoth INEOS recently declared its intention to reduce its workforce at Saltend by 20%.
The company, which is under the ownership of East Yorkshire-educated billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe, revealed earlier this month that 60 skilled positions at its Acetyls plant are being cut, after examining "every possible alternative".
Hull City Council leader, Cllr Mike Ross, described the redundancies as "deeply worrying."
