Scheme was given £1.3bn of government backing by chancellor Rachel Reeves earlier this month
Four firms including Bovis and Sir Robert McAlpine have won roles to build Universal Studios’ new £5bn theme park at a former brickworks near Bedford, Building understands.
Called Universal United Kingdom Resort, the scheme is set to be Europe’s largest and will be built on nearly 500 acres of land at Kempston Hardwick.
It will be the US firm’s first theme park in Europe, with the company already having several in its home country as well as the Far East and Asia.
The UK resort will be divided into five zones with Bovis building two and McAlpine one. Others also building a zone each are Wates and Morgan Sindall. Careys is understood to have been appointed to carry out groundworks ahead of main construction beginning.
The resort is expected to complete by 2031 and by the time it finishes will have created 20,000 construction jobs with 5,000 workers on site during peak.
A spokesperson for Universal Destinations & Experiences told Building: “A project of this scale will see us partnering with a range of different vendors, including locally based businesses who are already on-site supporting initial enabling works.”
The government is ploughing £1.3bn into the project for “regional and local community infrastructure to ensure the park can operate successfully, with improved transport links for local residents and visitors from across the UK and abroad”.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves, who, along with culture secretary Lisa Nandy, hosted Universal’s chairman and CEO of Universal Destinations & Experiences, Mark Woodbury, at 11 Downing Street earlier this month, said: “Our own investment in transport and infrastructure means that local people will benefit – improving connectivity, backing our creative industries and bringing millions of visitors to the UK from across the world.”
Comcast NBCUniversal, the firm behind the plans, said it would be investing over £5bn into the resort during its five years of construction as well as a further £1bn during its first 10 years of operation.
Universal expects the scheme to generate £50bn of revenue for the economy by 2055 and Woodbury added: “Universal United Kingdom Resort [will] feature[e] immersive storytelling, thrilling attractions and unparalleled creativity and innovation to the UK.
“This new theme park and resort will create so many new opportunities for the people of Bedford and beyond and allow us to share our distinct experiences with guests from around the world.”
Earlier this year, Universal said it had appointed Veolia to design and build a major new water treatment facility aiming to reduce the pressure which the theme park could put on nearby Bedford’s water infrastructure.
The facility, which will recycle and reuse water including rainwater runoff, will be operated by UK facilities management firm ESP Utilities Group.
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