Secretary of State for NI visits Longcliffe

Minister sees how Longcliffe Quarries provide essential materials to help UK ‘build back better’

THE Rt Hon Brandon Lewis MP, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, recently joined Derbyshire Dales local MP Sarah Dines on a visit to see Longcliffe Quarries’ £3.5 million washing plant investment. The new plant is assisting the company in meeting its objective of reaching zero-carbon operations by 2027.

Longcliffe Quarries – an independent, family-owned business and for nearly 100 years and a market-leading supplier of high-purity calcium carbonate – produce more than 100 products for a wide range of essential industries, from animal feeds and pet foods to glass and plasterboards, and from plastics and adhesives to PH correction and flu gas desulphurization.

The newly installed washing plant allows for the transformation of materials with a high clay content into valuable aggregates and sand grades a rate of 220 tonnes/h, allowing Longcliffe to recover key products from material that traditionally had to be discarded.

Commenting on the visit, Brandon Lewis said: ‘It was brilliant to visit Longcliffe Quarries with Sarah Dines. Longcliffe are providing the raw materials for our country to ‘build back better’, and the washing plant contributes to their ongoing efficiency goals, as well as to their objective of reaching zero-carbon quarrying operations by 2027. This machinery, which was manufactured by CDE in Northern Ireland, illustrates the strong business links between all nations of the UK and is a fantastic example of the Union in action.’

Expressing her pleasure at joining Mr Lewis on the visit, Sarah Dines said: ‘Robert Shields DL, chairman of Longcliffe Group, briefed Brandon on the vast range of Longcliffe products at the heart of so many British industries. We were also shown the state-of- the-art machinery, made in Northern Ireland, at the heart of the company’s quarrying operation – a great example of our United Kingdom at work.

‘Longcliffe Quarries is an important local business employing many local people and providing much-needed materials for the whole country. I want to thank Robert and all the team at Longcliffe for their hospitality.’

David Kinloch, CDE’s director of business development for the UK and Ireland, remarked: ‘We are very pleased the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland had the opportunity to witness first-hand the product of our partnership with Longcliffe as they strive to achieve their sustainability targets, underpinned and enabled by CDE expertise and technology.

‘As a locally owned and managed company based in Northern Ireland for three decades, we operate at the very forefront of our sector in the UK, supporting our customers in delivering meaningful change in pursuit of their own green objectives and national targets to reduce their carbon footprint. Longcliffe are a powerful example of that vision in action, demonstrating the potential of our solutions and their positive impact on the environment and local communities.’