Vince Cable, Secretary of State for Business, has welcomed today’s announcement that the Newquay Aerohub Enterprise Zone (EZ) is to receive £6 million of new funding for the first phase of its business park.
The funding includes a £2.3 million investment from the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) and a grant from the European Regional Development Fund Convergence programme of £3.9 million, with Cornwall Council providing the land.
The construction programme will start in early October and see completion of phase one in June 2015.
The 53.5 acre business park site will form part of the Aerohub EZ and is included in the EZ’s Local Development Order.
It will have space for over 30,000 sq ft of buildings and phase one will ensure the park is investor ready, delivering site services including road access, electricity, water and broadband.
“This new funding will help develop valuable infrastructure for the new business park to attract increased investment”
The HCA funding also includes a £150k contribution to the ‘Rialton Link’ road, adding to the improvement of local infrastructure.
Dr Cable welcomed the announcement as he passed through the EZ during his visit to Cornwall today. He said: “Cornwall’s Aerohub is an excellent example of one of the 24 Government-backed Enterprise Zones that are driving private sector-led growth across England.
“This new funding will help develop valuable infrastructure for the new business park to attract increased investment and create more jobs for Newquay and the surrounding area.”
Chris Pomfret, chairman of the Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), added: “The business park is a vital component of the Aerohub Enterprise Zone which is already home to six new businesses and has created more than 150 jobs since 2012.
“Our aim is to unlock further growth of both the aerospace and space sectors in Cornwall to create skilled, well-paid jobs and this investment is an important step towards achieving that.”
