If funding is approved, it is expected the facility will open in September 2022. A council report says the facility would be “sector-leading, a pioneering Centre of Excellence”, which would be “capable of delivering a new curriculum fit for the engineering industry of the future”. Around 600 learners are expected to attend the centre by 2026/27 on a range of full-time, part-time, higher education and apprenticeship courses. The centre will benefit from “state-of-the-art equipment and resources” to enable a range of training which would support the future skills needs of the manufacturing industry across Blaenau Gwent and the Heads of the Valley, a report says.