£280m race track gains council approval in Wales

A new £280m racetrack in Blaenau Gwent, south Wales, will be built after receiving approval from local councillors.

The development, which will be built near Ebbw Vale, will generate an estimated £50m annually for the economy and was given unanimous backing during a meeting of the county borough council.

The project covers 830 acres (335 hectares) of land and will be built by the Heads of the Valleys development Company (HVDC).

The track will be one of the largest ever privately led investment programmes in the history of UK motor sport and will create around 3,000 new jobs during the construction phase.

The first phase of development will see the construction of the race circuit in addition to a hotel and commercial and retail complexes.

The track will be 3.5m (5.6km) long and will also feature a karting track and off-road driving facilities.