Issue - meetings

Report of the Director of Property Services and Development

The Cabinet considered a report of the Director of Property Services and Development and the Director of Business, Investment and Culture, which set out proposals to enter into a joint venture arrangement with Coventry Airport Limited in order to promote the Coventry Airport site as a location for a Gigafactory or, if the Gigafactory proposal is not forthcoming, employment let commercial development.

A corresponding private report was also submitted to the meeting setting out the commercially confidential matters of the proposals. (Minute 83 below refers.)

The delivery of a Gigafactory, making batteries for electric cars on a mass scale was a key national and regional priority and would be a key part of the UK’s efforts to deliver the technology that can remove the dependence on fossil fuels within the economy.  The Council believed that Coventry and Warwickshire were well placed to be the location for a Gigafactory given its proximity to large scale automotive production throughout the West Midlands.

A Gigafactory could deliver up to 4,000 new jobs directly, as well as thousands more in the supply chain, and would lead to significant investment in the local economy.  The West Midlands Mayor and West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) and the leaders of all constituent authorities have all agreed that Coventry Airport is the preferred regional site for a Gigafactory.

Coventry Airport Limited have a 150-year lease on the site, expiring in 2160 and the Council is the freeholder of the site.  These arrangements mean that neither party is able to take forward any proposals on the Airport site without the full co-operation of the other, hence the need for a joint venture to take the forward this opportunity.

RESOLVED that, the Cabinet:

1.  Approve the Council entering into a joint venture arrangement with Coventry Airport Limited to promote the Coventry Airport site for use as a Gigafactory or employment led commercial development.

2.  Delegate authority to the Director of Property Services and Development and the Director of Law and Governance, following consultation with the Director of Finance and Corporate Services and the Cabinet Member for Jobs and Regeneration, to undertake the necessary due diligence and approve the structure of the joint venture arrangements and, thereafter, enter into any associated legal agreements (including the authority to effect any lease variations / surrender and any future disposal if appropriate) that are necessary to deliver the joint venture arrangements and give effect to the recommendations with in the report submitted.

3.  Approve expenditure of up to £250,000 from reserves in advance of future capital receipts to fund the workstreams required to further develop the Gigafactory proposal (including further technical and feasibility and business case development).

4.  Approve expenditure of up to £1m (as a 50% share) from reserves in advance of future capital receipts to fund the work streams required to take forward the entry into the joint venture arrangements, the submission of the planning application and disposal process (if appropriate) for the Coventry Airport site.