Celtic Manor Resort: Sir Terry Matthews reveals £160m expansion

Plans have been confirmed for a £160m expansion of the Celtic Manor Resort at Newport.

The venue, which hosted the 2010 Ryder Cup golf tournament, said it would create 230 new permanent jobs, and 700 in construction and supply.

Ten luxury chalets and 40 apartments will be built at the resort, owned by billionaire Sir Terry Matthews.

Plans to build Europe's longest zip wire attraction at the resort will be unveiled in August.

Sir Terry told the Western Mail newspaper the hotel is "simply work in progress".

He told BBC Wales the zip wire would be a mile long and would see users reaching speeds of 70mph.

He said: "It goes from the top of the hill all the way down in to Caerleon."

Simon Gibson, chief executive of Sir Terry's investment fund Wesley Clover, said the development would unfold over a ten-year period.

Sir Terry said the new luxury chalets would provide extra capacity for the hotel

The resort also revealed that plans are being finalised for a Sky Wire Wales attraction, featuring a one-mile series of zip wires carrying users from the hilltop resort across the River Usk.

The hotel currently has 409 rooms. The resort already employs 740 people, with 300 more in seasonal employment.

Last October a financial impact study carried out by Ryder Cup Ltd concluded that the tournament at the Celtic Manor Resort injected an additional £82.4m into the south Wales economy.

An estimated £28m of that went directly to Newport companies, it said.

Steve Sulley, chairman of Newport Chamber of Commerce, said the plans were "great news for Newport".

"These latest developments, build on the recent impetus to make it a family destination resort, and will add to the first class children's golf and high wire climbing attractions," he said.

"Having CEOs of major companies spending family time, as well as corporate time at the resort, has to bode well for the area. If they experience life here, they may just want to do business here."

Newport council leader Bob Bright said the expansion and extra jobs could "only have a positive effect on the city".

He said: "The Ryder Cup 2010 certainly put Newport on the map and much work has been done to enhance the city's offering for visitors."