Turkish building materials firm Assan Panel has unveiled plans to build its first UK manufacturing facility at Freeport East near Felixstowe.

The £45m insulation plant is planned to be operational by Autumn 2025 and Assan is also is planning to establish a new office in Ipswich to serve the UK market.

It will produce sandwich panels filled with Polyisocyanurate (PIR), mineral wool, or polyurethane.

Haluk Kayabaşı, CEO of Assan parent company Kibar Holding said: “We aim to further strengthen our presence in the European market with the new facility investment of Assan Panel in the UK, which has previously increased its presence abroad with the investments it has realized in Jordan and Azerbaijan.

“By making a difference with the innovative, pioneering, sustainable, energy-efficient products we offer, we serve the transition in European sandwich panel markets to sustainable solutions, and now with more concentration in the UK.”

Steve Beel, Chief Executive of Freeport East, added: “This announcement represents a real milestone in strengthening the presence of green industry in and around the Stowmarket and wider Freeport East area.

“With close proximity to the Port of Felixstowe and the flexibility of the freeport customs model, locating in Freeport East provides Assan Panel with the ideal base from which to serve both UK and European markets. We are confident this is a model that will encourage other international manufacturers to consider Freeport East as a future strategic location.”