Agenda item

Report of the Director of Regeneration and Economy

The Scrutiny Board considered a Briefing Note of the Director of Regeneration and Economy which provided an update on the Greenpower Park development and the wider Coventry & Warwick Investment Zone. The report was a further update to that provided to the Board on 12 March 2025.

During the officers’ summary of the report, they highlighted that Coventry City Council (CCC) owns the freehold of Coventry Airport, a 125 hectare (Ha) site in Warwick District. In 2021, the Council formed a joint venture with Coventry Airport Limited, which has a long leasehold over the site in-order to promote the site as the location for a battery gigafactory. The site is being marketed as Greenpower Park.

Planning approval for a total of 530,000m2 of development on the site for battery manufacturing and associated uses such as battery recycling, Research & Development (R&D), supply chain and HQ functions was agreed in January of 2022, which once developed could lead to the creation of 6000 jobs.

The investment zone is one of eight in the UK, specifically focusing on battery manufacturing, utilising tax reliefs, planning mechanisms and innovation, skills and business support to create private sector growth and quality jobs. Greenpower Park, together with adjacent sites at SEGRO Park Coventry, Whitley South and Whitley East are collectively known as the Coventry & Warwick Investment Zone (CWIZ) - a site map was attached at appendix 1 to the report.

The Cabinet Member for Jobs, Regeneration and Climate Change, Councillor J O’Boyle, further elaborated on the benefits on the investment zone and the Council’s partnership working with the Rigby Group to make it an attractive investment opportunity for international businesses.

The Board made comments, sought assurances and asked questions on a number of issues including:

·  The relationship between the 3 West Midlands investment zones: Coventry (battery manufacturing), Birmingham (life sciences), and Wolverhampton (green construction).

·  The benefit of the investment zone to local residents – prioritising residents for employment and working with the Council to fast-track recruitment to hundreds of positions quickly.

o  Investors benefitting from the already advanced automative supply chain infrastructure in the region.

·  The potential of Chinese investment.

·  The timescales and route provision of the VLR (Very Light Rail) line to provide public transport to Greenpower Park and alternate bus routes in the meantime.

·  Governance arrangements – WMCA (West Midlands Combined Authority) Investment Zone Board, WMCA Oversight and Scrutiny Board, alongside regular progress updates back to Scrutiny Board 3.

·  Coventry Airport ceasing operations in June 2026.

·  The investment supplied by the Rigby Group and the potential to see s.106 money from developers.

·  How power supply to the site and power creation is being provided by renewable energy.

·  Freehold and leasehold arrangements in partnership with the Rigby Group.

·  The key constraints on the investment zone – planning permission and tax incentives specifically for battery manufacturing.

o  Legal arrangements in place to prevent other developments such as data centres or housing.

·  Midland Air Museum remaining on site with the potential to benefit from the development.

·  50% of the site being allocated as greenspace especially on the outside barrier to off-set development.

·  Power supply being solely for the site alone.

·  Traffic disruptions in Lower Stoke around Humber Rd and London Rd.

RESOLVED that the Business, Economy and Enterprise Scrutiny Board considers the content of the briefing note.