£250m Swansea University work

A £20m investment is set to give Swansea University one of the most up to date engineering departments in the world.

The money from the European Regional Development Fund was announced at the beginning of the construction phase for the new Science and Innovation Campus, which is expected to create thousands of jobs in the city.

Megan Boot reports.

First Minister Carwyn Jones will visit the site of Swansea University's new Science and Innovation Campus later, marking the start of work on the construction stage of the multi-million pound development announced last year.

Project leaders say they're aiming to create a centre which will focus on research and development facilities, initially concentrating on expanding research into high-tech areas of industry.

The first students are due on site by September 2015.

The first phase of development is said to be worth £250m, with an estimated 4,000 direct and 6,000 indirect jobs created during the construction phase.

Neath Port Talbot Council have given the go ahead to a new proposed £250m Science and Innovation Campus. The Council granted detailed planning permission to the University which is in its final stages of an EU procurement process to build the new campus at a site on Fabian Way.

The detailed designs which have been approved by the Council build upon the previously approved outline planning application. If the procurement process is concluded successfully, work will begin on site early next year, with the first students arriving in 2015.

The University claim the ambitious project will attract inward investment to Wales and promote the growth of high-technology clusters and will establish the region as a vibrant location for modern, high technology companies, bringing even greater eventual impact.