PLANS to develop a national energy centre in the North-East - leading to the creation of thousands of jobs - were officially unveiled yesterday.

The Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) will be the UK's core research centre and be responsible for the allocation of £1bn of research and development funds, over the next ten years.

Five regions, including the North-East, have been shortlisted as the possible home of the facility. The ETI board is expected to announce a final shortlisting on August 23, and the Government will choose the successful bid in October.

Yesterday, the North East England Consortium unveiled its proposals to more than 70 stakeholders from both industry and academia at an event at Newcastle University's Devonshire Building - the proposed home for the ETI.

The consortium comprises Newcastle, Durham and Northumbria universities, the Centre for Process Innovation, in Wilton, on Teesside, and the New and Renewable Energy Centre, in Blyth, Northumberland.

Nick Brown, Minister for the North-East, gave his support to the project.

He said: "North-East England is striving to become one of the world's first carbon neutral regions. Newcastle University's Devonshire Building is leading the way in showing the world what can be done to minimise carbon emissions. Today we are demonstrating just why this region would make the ideal headquarters for the Energy Technologies Institute."

The ETI will operate on a "distributed" basis, with research taking place at scientific and academic centres across the UK and overseas. The host will act as a hub to co-ordinate activity as well as drawing on its own regional research strengths, and will drive and create funding for energy research and development projects across the UK.

Professor Paul Younger, the consortium's co-ordinator, said winning the ETI project would attract thousands of jobs and huge prestige to the region.

"This area has deeper roots in energy science and engineering than any other region in the world," he said.

"Our team believes passionately that the ETI would thrive in North-East England, and is committed to bringing the project to its natural home."

The North-East's energy sector is estimated to be worth about £900m and is the most productive and rapidly growing of all sectors in the region, currently employing about 8,000 people.

The sector is expected to grow by 206 per cent over the next ten years with employment set to rise to 19,400 with a contribution to gross value added of more than £2,667m by 2016.

Other regions shortlisted in the ETI bidding process include Midland Consortium, North-West Consortium, Energy Technology Partnership, from Scotland, and Sheffield University.

For further information on the North-East's ETI proposal visit http://eti.ncl.ac.uk/index.php