Energy firm eyes up £18m Staffordshire campus investment

Hitachi Energy and predecessor ABB has been based at the former shoe factory on Oulton Road in Stone for nearly thirty years, but has announced plans to uproot to new facilities elsewhere in the county, a move which it says will safeguard 400 jobs in the area. 

However the company says the move depends on planning permission being granted for the development of 114 homes on the company's existing site, an application lodged in 2022 which has so far generated 75 objections from residents on Staffordshire County Council's planning portal, who fear the loss of the site would be the end of the town's final link to its shoe-making heritage.

In August, the company lodged a planning application with Stafford Borough Council for proposed light industrial and warehouse units on land formally used for car storage at Beacon Business Park on the edge of Stafford.

The firm described the new scheme, alongside the opening of a new headquarters building in Birmingham this year, as a "clear commitment to the Midlands".

"To enable the move to the new campus, plans have been submitted to Staffordshire Borough Council for the former site to be replaced by over 100 homes, 40 per cent of which would be affordable housing. Repurposing the old site has been described as key to facilitating the company’s move to the new campus, with the decision returning to the council’s planning committee in 2025," said a statement issued by Hitachi Energy.

"While some residents have raised objections to the demolition of part of the buildings on the current Stone site, Historic England’s 2022 report found that the site did not meet the criteria to be listed a heritage asset even though the factory does have some local interest due to its history of shoe-manufacturing. That said, the buildings on the current site cannot be modernised due to excessive costs, meaning Hitachi Energy’s plans for a new Operational Campus nearby hinge on the outcome of planning decisions.

"The new facilities would be operational by 2026, and the 400 existing staff based in Stone would be based at the new campus."

The company says its proposed new campus, consisting of two buildings, is designed to support the future growth of Hitachi Energy´s UK energy infrastructure business.

A supporting statement submitted with the new application said the development would provide a platform for the "super growth period" currently being experienced by Hitachi Energy, which the firm says is aligned with the growing sustainable energy market.

"The proposed facility of two buildings will be part of a campus where employees can meet, collaborate, and work with colleagues, customers, and stakeholders," it said. 

"The buildings will be designed to deliver the highest of modern working conditions and will ensure our colleagues are extremely proud to work out of this facility at Beacon Park. The facility will provide the foundation for retaining our existing staff and supporting the attraction of new talent needed to support a growing business, whilst supporting our customers who are gearing up to deliver the energy transition."