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Investment Central to your business success

Making the East Midlands the destination for UK and international investment.
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Collage showing the sites within East Midlands Global Gateway

Your opportunity

Watch our film, 'Your opportunity'

About East Midlands Freeport

The East Midlands Freeport (EMF) was announced as a successful Freeport bid by the UK Government in March 2021.

As the UK’s only inland Freeport, it will drive economic regeneration across the East Midlands. And underpinning this is a unique and world leading combination of partners focused on creating thousands of jobs, boosting skills and accelerating the region’s commitment to decarbonisation and Net Zero through low carbon energy investments.

Already home to world-leading multinational companies and East Midlands Airport - the UK’s busiest ‘pure’ cargo airport - EMF is uniquely placed to capitalise and innovate on the region’s unrivalled commercial and industrial strengths:

Advanced manufacturing, automotive and logistics

Multimodal transport connections - covering air, rail and road

Once-in-a-generation investment in infrastructure

Leading higher and further education institutions

Meetings

The latest Board and Committee meeting papers.

Latest News

Find out the latest news about the East Midlands Freeport.

Our Vision

East Midlands Freeport's vision focuses on:

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Realising our Potential​

Transforming the East Midlands through economic growth

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Harnessing our Strengths​

Our central location, transport links and unrivalled expertise

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A Unique, Cohesive Offer​

Bringing together collaboration, investment and innovation

Our Sites

Straddling three East Midlands counties, East Midlands Freeport features three main sites: the East Midlands Airport and Gateway Industrial Cluster (EMAGIC) in North West Leicestershire, the Ratcliffe-on-Soar Power Station site in Rushcliffe in Nottinghamshire and the East Midlands Intermodal Park (EMIP) in South Derbyshire.

The exact location of the sites are shown in: 

East Midlands Freeport location and tax sites (PDF, 315.43 KB) Opens new window

The sites are strategically located with strong existing road and rail freight infrastructure connecting them to all other parts of the country, including seaport-based freeports. There is significant room for growth across the sites, accelerating regeneration, increasing skills and training opportunities and helping to level-up some of the UK’s most deprived areas. The site development process will be managed by the respective landowners and any future development proposals will be subject to planning approval and public consultation.

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East Midlands Airport and Gateway Industrial Cluster

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East Midlands Intermodal Park

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Ratcliffe-on-Soar Power Station site redevelopment


Our Ambition

To fulfil the UK Government’s goal to create national hubs for global trade and investment, promote regeneration and job creation and create hotbeds for innovation, East Midlands Freeport has the ambition to:

Drive significant new job growth in the region

Support regeneration and social mobility

Boost skills and opportunities

Drive local, regional and international trade

Support the ‘levelling up’ agenda

Harness innovation and enterprise

Position the region as a ‘green tech’ trailblazer

Reduce greenhouse gas emissions in pursuit of Net Zero

Our Partners

Collaboration is the bedrock of our successful bid for the East Midlands Freeport - combining public and private sector know-how and oversight and expertise from key sectors including transport and education.

As a collective, our partners are committed to delivering this powerful and unique proposition on behalf of the region and its people, driving a prosperous social and economic future as part of an ambitious ‘levelling up’ package for the East Midlands.

What are Freeports?

Freeports are a flagship Government programme that will play an important part in the UK’s post-COVID economic recovery and contribute to realising the levelling up agenda, bringing jobs, investment and prosperity to some of the most deprived communities, with targeted and effective support.​​

Do you want to operate a Freeport customs site?

A Freeport customs site (also known as a ‘free zone’) is a secure, enclosed customs zone where some of the normal tax and customs rules don't apply.

Freeport customs sites are run by an operator, known as a Customs Site Operator, who will be responsible for the security of the site and keeping records about goods moving in, around and out of the site, and activities undertaken.
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