A £23.6 million investment by the Tees Valley Combined Authority that will kick-start development on 270 acres of land at Teesside International Airport and unlock £200 million in private-sector investment has been given the go-ahead.

The funding will be used to develop critical infrastructure, including connecting the site to the main utilities and providing access to the south side of the airport from the A67.

A joint-venture partnership with a private-sector developer should then see 3.4 million ft² of logistic, manufacturing and commercial space built at the airport in the next 10 years.

Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen (www.teesvalley-ca.gov.uk) said: “Ever since I brought the airport back into public ownership and saved it from closure, I have made clear that the future of our airport and its success goes way beyond just securing more flights.

"It means working in the interests of the businesses in the region, and those elsewhere looking to relocate here.

"This is vital to growing our economy and creating the good-quality well-paid jobs we all want to see come to our region for hard-working local people.

"This development goes even further, with all the money made pumped back into Teesside International to realise our ambitions of making it a success.”

Councillor Mary Lanigan said: “We have a massive opportunity to develop a top-quality business park right on the airport’s doorstep that will draw inward investment into Tees Valley.

"We have been looking at ways to maximise the benefits from our airport, and this is the next step on its road to success.”