Dan Tenney returned to the North East, where Lockheed Martin UK hopes to build a satellite assembly plant in addition to work with Northumbria University and the UK Space Agency

A senior leader from defence and aerospace giant Lockheed Martin has visited the region to see progress in significant investment.

Dan Tenney, senior vice president of global business development and strategy, was instrumental in driving Lockheed Martin UK’s commitment to the North East via and ambitions for an £85m satellite factory and the setting up of a £50m space research facility with Northumbria University. Mr Tenney made a return visit alongside Lockheed’s vice president of global space, Rod Drury, to see how the firm’s involvement has strengthened the growing space sector.

He visited the North East Space Skills and Technology Centre (NESST), a joint project between Lockheed Martin Space UK, Northumbria University and the UK Space Agency which is due to open later this year. The centre is based in Northumbria’s Newcastle city centre campus, in the Wynne Jones building.

Mr Tenney said: “The North East is building something unique for the UK. The combination of world-class skills, industrial capability and regional leadership is creating the foundations for a sovereign space ecosystem that can support economic growth, innovation, and national capability.

“It has been inspiring to see the progress made since our initial investment discussions and to see the vision becoming a reality.”

The visit to Newcastle follows an announcement in early June by Lockheed Martin UK that it was looking to hire an initial 17 people in the North East, as part of wider ambitions to create up to 2,000 jobs in the UK. Among that cohort was high tech roles including nuclear radiation hardening, spacecraft platforms and cryptography, among other specialisms. Lockheed is also recruiting for commercial managers, supply chain leads, cost analysts, trainer roles and senior project planners.

The jobs are part of Lockheed Martin UK’s commitment to a long-term skills pipeline in the region. In May, following a meeting in Washington DC between North East Mayor Kim McGuinness and Lockheed Martin UK, a memorandum of understanding was signed to solidify that commitment, along with investment and supply chain growth.

And Mr Drury’s return to the region followed a visit in March where he set out plans to create an £85m satellite factory at County Durham’s NETPark – a move he said could create up to 500 jobs. Those plans are contingent on Lockheed being awarded a Government contract which is due to be announced any time.

If successful, Lockheed has said it would look to set up an assembly and testing facility spanning more than 50,000 sqft. The facility would initially focus on assembly of components built elsewhere, with Mr Drury saying he hoped that in time Lockheed could manufacturer parts in the North East.