Carmarthenshire County Council leaders have welcomed the start of an ambitious development at Cross Hands west, which will create hundreds of new jobs for the area.

The council’s Leader Cllr Emlyn Dole and Chief Executive Mark James visited the 10-acre site recently to meet with Robert Ware, Chief Executive of The Conygar Investment Company PLC, which will deliver over 100,000 square feet of retail space.

Some 260 new retail jobs are in the pipeline, with more than a hundred more secured during the construction phase via Carmarthenshire-based contractor TRJ Ltd which will deliver the build.

Cllr Dole said the development shows great confidence in the local economy.

“This investment is the first for Conygar in Carmarthenshire, and hopefully the start of many more,” he said.

“This demonstration of confidence in our local economy, and the company’s commitment to creating new jobs in the county, is something we truly welcome. This is good news for the area, and a sign of a prosperous future ahead.”

Mr Ware said: “We are pleased to see work starting on site at Cross Hands which is an ambitious investment for Conygar. We are particularly pleased to have secured a local contractor which will have a significant impact locally, with our investment securing jobs and training opportunities for TRJ’s workforce and sub-contractors.”

Dafydd Jones, Director of TRJ Ltd, added: “As a Carmarthenshire company, we are delighted to have been chosen by Conygar to deliver this cornerstone project at Cross Hands. This will keep a large team of directly employed local people busy. We were fortunate to have made a good start on site at the end of last year and are on target for completion to our client's required date later in the year.”