Details on how nearly £500m of yet to be committed funding in the £1.2bn City Deal for the Cardiff Capital Region (CCR) will be spent have been revealed.
The City Deal is made up of 海角视频 and Welsh government backing, as well as the borrowing powers of the 10 local authorities that make up the region: Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend, Caerphilly, Cardiff, Merthyr Tydfil, Monmouthshire, Newport, Rhondda Cynon Taff, Torfaen and Vale of Glamorgan.
Some £734m has already been committed to the next phase of the south Wales Metro project ,with electrification of rail's core Valley Lines.
The aim is that funding provided will generate four times match funding from the private sector.
Just over £38m has already been committed in helping to develop the world's first cluster for compound seminconductors in the region, while a funding commitment, subject to match funding from the 海角视频 Government, of £50m has been identified for a much needed upgrade of Cardiff Central Railway Station.
Now the regional cabinet of the CCR, made up of the local authorities leaders, has announced the creation of an investment and intervention framework, based on the three priorities of innovation, infrastructure and challenge.
The three-way funding model aims to build a delivery pipeline with partners, within and beyond the region, while focusing on the priorities outlined in the Industrial and Economic Plan, which was launched in February earlier this year.
The Innovation Priority
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Worth £220m it will look at proposals demonstrating intellectual property, market leadership and competitive strength.
It will support propositions in targeted growth sectors that have the greatest potential for direct economic return on investment through job creation and gross value added increase.
The Infrastructure Priority
Worth £200m, it will focus on targeted co-investment and pooling of resources to deliver maximum impact through the delivery of new physical and digital infrastructure projects including roads, public transport, broadband, skills, sites or testbeds.
The Challenge Priority
Worth £75m, it will seek to stimulate the adoption of new products and solutions in south east Wales.
It will look at growing new markets and welcomes proposals that emerge from competitive spaces where more than one organisation or individual might be equipped to deliver, in order to offer more flexibility and scope for experimentation.
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Chair of the CCR regional cabinet and leader of Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council, Andrew Morgan, said: “In creating conditions for sustainable growth, there is a fine balance to be struck between strengthening innovation, infrastructure and competition.
“The CCR City Deal is an incredible opportunity for our region to unlock its performance potential through the implementation of ambitious, transformative projects, and I am confident that the Innovation, Infrastructure and Challenge Priorities will help maintain this balance and bring lasting benefits.”
Frank Holmes, chair of the CCR Economic Growth Partnership, said: “Our overarching goal is to improve Cardiff Capital Region’s business environment through strategic, targeted investments.
“These three priorities will enable us to target and select projects linked to the Industrial and Economic Plan’s growth objectives, which bring high return on investments and help keep the City Deal ever-green; back public sector-led infrastructure projects which are necessary to attract and enable investment in the region; and encourage the generation of innovative solutions.
“We are optimistic that Cardiff Capital Region can become one of the most investable regions within the 海角视频, and we look forward to receiving and originating the proposals which will contribute to make it happen.”