60 new jobs to be created at Cookstown manufacturing company

A COOKSTOWN-based manufacturer is receiving government funding of £4.6m to produce heat pump parts and will create 60 new jobs as part of a drive to encourage households to use cleaner energy.

Copeland’s has received over £4.6m of UK government funding to boost heat pump compressor production at its Cookstown factory.

The £4,614,000 award under the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero’s Heat Pump Investment Accelerator Competition will be backed by a further ‘multi-million pound’ investment by Copeland to expand manufacturing by 240,000 compressors.

The investment will finance the infrastructure and equipment costs to introduce new production lines and invest in laboratory testing facilities.

Last year, Copeland announced a £19m investment in the Cookstown facility to increase production capacity to meet European heat pump demand. The investment included a 3,500 m²building expansion, including new production lines.

Speaking about the investment and the jobs it will create, UUP councillor Trevor Wilson described the news as ‘very welcome’ and shows the firm’s ambition for their site in Cookstown.

Cllr Wilson said: “This is very welcome news, and it will be great to see even more well-paid jobs coming for people in the town. Copeland has been in the town for nearly thirty years and was the second multinational employer to come to Cookstown and has been a vital employer.

“This investment from the company and the government shows a great commitment to the town and is a testament to the great workers at the site.”

Speaking in Westminster, the UK Government’s Secretary for Energy Consumers, Miatta Fahnbulleh, said about the investment: “Our Warm Homes Plan will mean lower bills and warmer homes for millions of families – helping drive better living standards as part of the Plan for Change.

“Following a record-breaking month for applications to our Boiler Upgrade Scheme, we are now proposing to give working families more choice and flexibility to pick the low-carbon upgrades that work best for them.

“And on top of this, we are investing over £4m in Copeland to continue building a homegrown heat pump industry and training up the army of skilled workers we need to achieve this.”