Gas company to move into one of Wolverhamptons biggest office and warehouse spaces

The 25,000 sq ft facility in Planetary Road will be the regional hub for Cadent’s West Midlands network, which covers Congleton to Hereford, and the M1 to the Welsh borders.

The two-storey building has just secured planning permission and will house 150 desk stations, meeting rooms and welfare facilities for hundreds of employees and contractors.

Building work is set to begin within weeks and complete by May next year.

Cadent is investing around £3 million in the building fit out and taking a 20-year lease from property company Fiera Real Estate, which has in turn contracted with local developer Opus Land to manage the construction.

The gas network manages 15,000 miles of underground distribution pipes in its West Midlands network, as well as providing the region’s 24/7, year-round gas emergency service.

Cadent is a leading player in the UK journey to net zero, as it lays the foundations to switch our reliance on fossil gas, to greener gases like hydrogen and biomethane. These are considered essential to achieving carbon neutrality by the UK target date of 2050.

It currently has two bases in Wolverhampton and these operations – and all employees – will move to the new building when it is ready to open.

“We’ve got exciting times ahead, both in maintaining a safe, reliable gas network and in helping the West Midlands reach net zero,” said Kate Grant, director of Cadent’s West Midlands Network.

“This new facility in Wolverhampton is exciting for us in many ways, not least in making sure we have the right work space for our team to thrive.

"We can’t really get much more central to the network than Wolverhampton and we aim to continue being a key part of this community for many years to come.”

The new building will house multi-faith facilities and contemplation rooms, a canteen and kitchen, showers and a rest room, and have level access throughout.

Solar panels on the roof will supplement power supply, rainwater will be harvested for toilet flushing and 10 per cent of car parking spaces will have electric vehicle charging points.

As well as the office space, there will be 500 sq metres of warehouse, for storage of machinery and other equipment essential to ensure the safe operation of the gas network.