Building work to start on UK's biggest gigafactory

Construction work on the UK's biggest electric car battery factory near Bridgwater could begin as early as this week.

Piling work on Building One at the former Royal Ordnance factory site in Puriton is expected to run until spring next year.

Joe Hibbert the Vice President of Capital Projects at Agratas said it was an "important milestone" for the £4bn plant.

The project is expected to take two years to build and will involve around 2,000 construction workers.

Agratas, which is part of the Tata Group, said it has submitted its first compliance application to Somerset Council to build the manufacturing facility at the Gravity Smart Campus.

The site benefits from planning permission granted by a Local Development Order, but it still needs Somerset Council to issue certificates to show it is complying with planning conditions.

Joe Hibbert, Vice President for Capital Projects at Agratas said: "It's a huge construction project. One of the biggest of its kind in the country.

"To give a sense of scale, you could lay the Shard, the UK's tallest building, down twice end to end inside inside the site.

"A site of that scale brings challenges for construction, it brings concerns to the local community which we're fully aware of and we'll work with community to do our best to to mitigate those concerns."

In line with this commitment, he confirmed that no noisy activity would be undertaken during the night.

Around 200 lorry movements every day were estimated during the construction.

Mr Hibbert also assured that all traffic would be directed to the new Enterprise Way road, instead if running through Puriton or Woolavington.

The project is predicted to create more than 2,000 construction jobs and around 4,000 jobs when the factory opens in 2026.

The organisation also promised to deliver on its local-first commitment to jobs and skills.

Mr Hibbert said: "We're working with Bridgwater and Taunton (College) to develop bespoke education and training programmes to get this opportunity out to as many people as possible.

"We'll be hosting events after the (school) holidays, where we'll be showing the opportunities that are available for local business suppliers and people to get involved."

Local residents can also get in touch with the organisation to raise any concerns, questions or complaints about the development through a focused community email address.

"We're geared up to communicate and most importantly to listen. We will be a good neighbour. It's an absolute priority for us."

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