Circuit of Wales nears construction, 'will be ready' for MotoGP

The Circuit of Wales will be ready to host the British MotoGP round in 2016, its developer claims, after the project entered the final process for securing planning permission.

Delays over securing the right to build on common land has substantially set back the beginning of building work on the £315m project, but that legal process is set to come to an end next month.

Last week an application was made for the site to be deregistered as common land after agreeing terms with the current owner, on which a decision is expected within 28 days.

The Heads of the Valleys Development Company announced a five-year deal to host the British round of MotoGP, then agreed a deal with Donington Park to host the 2015 race while the Welsh track is built.

Development company director Chris Herring said clearing the final planning hurdle would allow for construction to begin as early as December this year.

"It's a maximum of 28 days but that's without allowing for any objections," he told AUTOSPORT.

"It's the last process [before beginning construction] but not the last hurdle by any means.

"There'll be 101 things to deal with in the coming months but it means we can start closing things down.

"We're looking at December or January to begin construction work, and for a fully-operational cricuit we're looking at 18 months.

"That's the sort of time that's in the back of everyone's mind.

"A construction company is not going to commit itself to a timeline it can't achieve. We are looking at 2016."

SCEPTICS DISMISSED

Several concerns have been raised over the project in recent months, including criticism for a lack of transparency over its funding sources and links to a Welsh government minister whose involvement with the project led to him breaching the ministerial code.

There have also been fresh calls from environmental groups to reassess the impact the venue would have on the area's biodiversity.

Herring said the negative publicity this had generated for the project was "frustrating" but he claimed there was no requirement on the part of either the officials or the Welsh Government to disclose confidential information on its investors.

"I don't think there's any easy way to approach big projects like this so we have gone along quietly," he said.

"Criticism is unavoidable but the people it hurts the most is the people in the area who then start to doubt the project and doubt their own futures.

"There are confidentiality issues with private funding but it's not an issue with the Welsh Government, so why should people ask that question? What business is it to anyone else?

"We would not have come this far if we didn't have the plans in place for construction and private investment. The project would have died, undoubtedly."