First Minister Carwyn Jones said that the contracts will be made available on the Welsh government’s Sell2Wales procurement channel. It is the first time that private sector contracts have been advertised on Sell2Wales.
The move comes as Aston Martin begins redeveloping a Ministry of Defence (MOD) site in St Athan (below), with the aim of turning it into the car brand’s newest manufacturing facility.
The Welsh government said using Sell2Wales will ensure Welsh SMEs have easy access to the raft of contracts being awarded by the car firm for work linked to the preparation and commencement of production at the new site.
Jones said: “The move means that Welsh SMEs will now have easy access to the range of contracts being advertised by Aston Martin for work on the St Athan site and when combined with for example active supplier development from Business Wales could potentially mean over £60 million of contracts coming to Wales.
“Aston Martin is already having a positive influence on the economy of Wales with more than 40 Welsh workers already employed at the Gaydon site and we know that many more job opportunities will follow before 2020.”
The luxury car firm announced last year that it had selected St Athan from 20 potential global locations it had been considering for its second manufacturing facility. The St Athan site is expected to employ 750 workers before 2020, with many more jobs in the local supply chain.
Dr Andy Palmer, president and chief executive of Aston Martin, said: “We are delighted to have made another significant step forward on our St Athan journey, as we develop the former MOD site to our new manufacturing facility. Being able to use the Sell2Wales procurement channel has enabled us to promote the various contracts we have to a wider audience within Wales and beyond.”
