Huge new Wolverhampton base for gas provider gets green light
A huge new base for one of Britain’s biggest gas suppliers will be built in Wolverhampton after plans were given the green light.
Cadent Gas will take up more than 36,000 square feet of space on Bowmans Business Park off Planetary Road, keeping hundreds of jobs in the city.
The firm wanted to bring its two existing Wolverhampton sites – in Stafford Road and Cats and Kittens Lane – together to help improve its operation which serves Black Country, Birmingham, Worcestershire, Stoke, Northampton and Coventry.
As well as the main depot, the new site will feature offices, a logistics store, car parking, cycle storage and a service yard.
The company currently employees 300 people, including 100 ‘operatives’ who spend most of their working day on the road carrying out maintenance works.
All these jobs will be retained and representatives for Cadent said the new depot will enable them to expand and create more employment in the future.
Planning agent Pegasus Group said: “The proposed development will be brought forward by Cadent as part of their greater West Midlands gas distributor facility and they wish to continue their presence in Wolverhampton through the consolidation of their existing facilities into one sustainable base.
“Through this application, they will commit their long-term future to the City for several decades, whilst making a multi-million pound investment into the local area.
“The existing 300 members of staff will be transferred to the new facility and through the creation of this bespoke premises, it affords Cadent opportunities to grow, resulting in new job creation in the future.
“This new single facility will allow the different parts of the business to efficiently work together, and particularly provides the ability to effectively support the ‘operatives’ who spend their time out on the road.
“This support role will be provided by the office workers and therefore, the office element cannot be divorced from the depot as they are intrinsically linked.
“They are one package, with the depot performing the primary use of the site as a logistics function and the office with the supporting administrative function.
“Fundamentally, without the depot there would be no office, and without them being sited together it cannot form an effective central facility.”
They added: “The application site is an available parcel of vacant brownfield land that is of suitable size to accommodate the Cadent facility, within close proximity to the strategic highway network.
“Cadent are already an established major employer in Wolverhampton, and wish to remain in the City.
“After careful consideration and an extensive site search exercise, the application site has been identified by them as the optimum location for this investment.
“The proposed development will create jobs through the construction phase, and this is particularly important during this current Covid-19 climate; whilst also keeping the current 300 jobs in the City.
“The proposed development will deliver environmental benefits through the development of a brownfield site, efficiently bringing an area of vacant land into productive use.
“The proposal will enhance the environmental value of the site through the inclusion landscaping; and is in close proximity to local facilities, services and public transport links reducing the dependency upon car travel for future occupiers and thus reducing carbon emissions.”
