The design of Cardiff’s new arena has been overhauled after material costs spiralled by more than 50%.

The venue, which is being developed by Robertson Group and will be operated by Live Nation and Oak View Group, was due to cost £180 million (€203m) but “inflationary pressures” saw it rise to almost £280m (€316m).

Now, architect Populous has made a number of major changes to the design, which have been approved by Cardiff Council planning committee.

The firm, which designed Tottenham Hotspur stadium and Cardiff’s Principality Stadium, has replaced its 2022 ‘lump of coal’ arena with a smaller, more rectangular, and lighter-coloured design inspired by the Welsh mountains.

The arena’s height, width, and length have shrunk by 6.5 metres, 9.53m, and 14m respectively, reducing the venue’s capacity from 17,000 to 15,348, according to Architects’ Journal.

Cardiff’s planning committee was told the venue has “lost capacity but gained versatility in what can be offered,” with a new flexible seating or standing arena at its centre.

Cardiff’s planning committee was told the venue has ‘lost capacity but gained versatility in what can be offered’

Other changes include a bronze-coloured aluminium façade, a ‘swoop’ on the arena’s southern exterior, and increased glazing on its east and west-facing elevations to create two arches on each, which will be illuminated for events.

The new arena will sit 4m south of the originally proposed position, on part of Cardiff’s existing County Hall car park in Atlantic Wharf within the Cardiff Bay area, which has been undergoing ongoing regeneration for more than 30 years.

In a design and access statement submitted for the new design in July this year, Populous wrote: ‘The proposed changes to the arena have arisen as a result of the global economic environment and associated increased material costs since the scheme was consented.’

The firm said a ‘full review’ of the proposals with the client led to the overhaul of the project to achieve ‘greater cost certainty’.

The arena was originally scheduled to open in 2025, but is not now set to be completed until the following year, according to Wales Online.

Live Nation already runs the existing 7,500-cap Motorpoint Arena Cardiff, as well as converted warehouse venue Titan Warehouse. OVG, meanwhile, is currently constructing the UK’s first all-electric arena, Co-op Live, in Manchester.

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The cost of building Cardiff’s new arena has spiralled by more than 50%, causing significant delays to the project, according to a report.

The 17,000-cap venue, which is being developed by Robertson Group, will be operated by Live Nation and Oak View Group and is set to form part of a wider multi-million-pound regeneration of Butetown, Cardiff in Wales, UK.

However, “inflationary pressures” have seen costs rise from £180 million (€203m) to almost £280m (€316m).

“Following the pandemic, the UK economy has experienced significant volatility with abnormal levels of inflation and significant interest rate rises,” reads a Cardiff Council document. “Inflationary pressures have pushed the original design of the new indoor arena from the procured figure of £180m to close to £280m.”

The report to members of the council’s cabinet adds that, as the authority’s borrowings for the project are capped, Live Nation has taken responsibility for the price increases.

“Live Nation has had to undertake a detailed review of the design to identify any opportunities to make savings”

“Live Nation remains committed to the project and has secured board level approval to cover the costs,” it continues. “Nonetheless, Live Nation is now working to reduce the level of cost increase through a review of the arena design and reconsideration of site infrastructure requirements.

“The cost of delivering the new indoor arena project has risen by more than 50%. Consequently, Live Nation has had to undertake a detailed review of the design to identify any opportunities to make savings. This has caused a significant delay to the programme. It is now anticipated that the final contract will be signed in July 2023 with a start on-site programmed for January 2024.”

The arena was originally scheduled to open in 2025, but is not now set to be completed until the following year, according to Wales Online.

Live Nation already runs the existing 7,500-cap Motorpoint Arena Cardiff, as well as converted warehouse venue Titan Warehouse. OVG, meanwhile, is currently constructing the UK’s first all-electric arena, Co-op Live, in Manchester.

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Construction of Live Nation and Oak View Group’s (OVG) new arena in Cardiff, UK is expected to start later this year after the development was granted planning permission.

The 17,000-cap venue, which is set to open in 2025, will form part of a wider multi-million-pound regeneration of Butetown, Cardiff in Wales.

The venue is being developed by Robertson Group with a view to bringing “some of the biggest names in the entertainment industry” to the city and cementing Cardiff Bay’s position as a “top-tier” visitor attraction.

“We are delighted with this decision, one of the most significant and landmark developments in the region for some years, and we look forward to delivering our vision for a new arena with our partners and Cardiff Council,” says Graham Walters, Live Nation UK Venues COO. “A world-class arena, with a global reputation for culture, will transform Atlantic Wharf for local, national, and international visitors to Cardiff, as well as facilitate job creation and economic growth in the region.”

“We are now looking forward to working together with our partners and the local community to give Cardiff and Wales the top tier arena they deserve”

Live Nation already runs the existing 7,500-cap Motorpoint Arena Cardiff, as well as converted warehouse venue Titan Warehouse. OVG, meanwhile, is currently constructing the UK’s first all-electric arena, Co-op Live, in Manchester.

“It is exciting that the plans for a new arena at Atlantic Wharf have been approved by the council,” adds OVG COO Mark Donnelly. “We are now looking forward to working together with our partners and the local community to give Cardiff and Wales the top tier arena they deserve.”

Phase One of the development formed part of a hybrid planning application that was submitted in November 2021 and has now been approved by Cardiff’s Planning Committee.

Both the arena and the wider masterplan are in line with Cardiff Council’s 2030 climate neutral aspirations, with energy strategies incorporated into the design and operational elements of the redevelopment set to achieve operational climate neutral positions by 2030.

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Live Nation has been identified as the preferred bidder to manage a new 15,000-capacity indoor arena in Cardiff.

The new venue, which will become Live Nation’s second arena in the Welsh capital, will cost around £150 million to build and, it is hoped, attract more than 1m visitors and an estimated £100m into the local economy annually.

A Live Nation-led consortium – which also includes venue company Oak View Group (OVG) and property firm Robertson – was behind one of two offers to Cardiff Council, which was seeking a private-sector partner to “deliver a top-tier UK venue that that will enable events of all sizes to be hosted in the city.”

Live Nation also operates the 5,000-capacity Cardiff International Arena (formerly Motorpoint Arena Cardiff), as well as converted warehouse venue Titan Warehouse. OVG, meanwhile, is currently constructing a new arena, Co-op Live, in Manchester, England.

Russell Goodway, Cardiff Council’s cabinet member for investment and development, says: “The city’s strategy is to establish the Cardiff Arena as a top-tier UK arena and to make it the premier arena in the south-west region of England and Wales.”

“Our combined experience in the delivery and operation of facilities of this nature will result in a world-class facility”

A rival arena in Bristol, in south-west England, YTL Arena, is now expected to open in 2023, after years of delays. It was originally due to open in 2018, with SMG Europe (now ASM Global) managing, but is now under construction at a new site.

According to Cardiff Council leader Huw Thomas, the council will commit less than 15% of the arena’s cost, with the remaining 85%+ of capital investment coming from the council’s private-sector partners.

In a joint statement, Live Nation, Oak View Group and Robertson say: “We are delighted to have been announced preferred bidder today to deliver the new Cardiff arena. We look forward to working in partnership with Cardiff Council to bring this ambitious vision to life over the next few years.

“Our combined experience in the delivery and operation of facilities of this nature will result in a world-class facility that will bring economic benefits to the entire region, both during its construction and for many years to come once it’s open. In 2021 we will embark on the next phase of the planning process, which will provide the wider community the opportunity to see our exciting proposals for the site.”

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