Developers for steel site shortlisted

1:13pm Thursday 20th December 2007

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FIVE developers are shortlisted to begin work on the massive £150 million regeneration of the former Ebbw Vale steelworks site.

The five private sector firms were selected after more than 40 developers and investors from around the UK came to see the potential of the 200-acre site first hand earlier this year.

The final five are Bellway, Edward Ware Homes, George Wimpey, Taylor Wimpey/Bryant Homes, and United Welsh Housing Association, with a bid from Charles Church in reserve.

Now the firms will be invited to submit detailed bids to develop the first phase of the regeneration, the 2.5 acre Northgate One site.

This residential site, which adjoins Steelworks Road, has outline planning permission for 56 homes, and is currently the only area on the market.

Blaenau Gwent councillors are likely to approve the final five bidders at a meeting on January 2.

Once a developer has been chosen for the project it is hoped that the homes could be complete by Autumn 2008.

A date has yet to be set for developers to express an interest in other areas of the site, but outline plans have been approved for 720 new homes, a hospital, learning campus, theatre, and leisure use that could bring up to 1,500 jobs.

A spokesman for Savills, the council's agents for the steelworks site, said the choice of developer for Northgate 1 will have no bearing on the development of the rest of the site.

Developers will bid for parcels of land when they are made available.

Ebbw Vale south councillor Mostyn Lewis said: "It is good to see some more positive movement. This is the first step in what will be a fabulous investment."

Major reclamation works costing £15 million are already well underway on site to excavate more than 200 million tonnes of material.

More than 1,100 people lost their jobs when the Corus steelworks closed in 2002.