NEWPORT has suffered a major jobs blow with the news that a £67 million manufacturing plant is on hold.
Around 200 people were due to be employed directly by the Quinn
Group at the insulation factory at Celtic Lakes while more were
expected to be created in the supply chain.
The company has confirmed it was postponing its investment in the city and has no timescale for building work to begin.
It is another project to be hit by the economic slump, particularly in the housing sector.
Insulation and cladding products due to be made in Newport were to be aimed at both domestic and commercial markets.
However, it is still hoped the plant will be opened when construction activity in the UK begins to recover.
Quinn Therm (UK) were being offered support by the Assembly by way of regional selective assistance.
A spokesman for the Assembly said no financial support had yet been given to this project.
He added they remained committed to supporting Quinn Therm "and
look forward to working with the company to bring this investment to
Newport".
The plant was due to be sited on 27 acres of prime land, near the
new M4 relief road, and not far from its first factory in Newport,
Quinn Radiators.
We exclusively revealed last June that the company, set by by Irish
entrepreneur Sean Quinn, wanted to make a second multi-million pound
investment in the city.
It was set to be the biggest factory of its kind in Europe and it was hoped to be in operation earlier this year.
But the site has remained undeveloped.
Quinn Therm said proposals for the new development had initially been delayed by the planning process last year.
At a planning meeting in September, when the scheme was given the
go-ahead, final proposals were submitted following extensive
negotiations over landscaping of the site.