Up to 280 jobs are to be created as plans for a new steel processing plant look set to be approved.

Canterbury-based company Parker Steel wants to build the plant at Shoreham harbour to process and store huge quantities of metal.

The 12-acre site is to the east of the former power station and wastewater works.

The plant would be a 24-hour operation, 365 days a year, and once the plant is at full capacity 150,000 tonnes of steel would be imported to the site per year with 24 lorries leaving per day, each carrying 25 tonnes of metal.

Adur District Council has received a handful of objections to the proposals from nearby residents who are unhappy their views could be affected by the construction of the giant metalworks.

But the scheme has been welcomed by both Shoreham Port Authority and Brighton and Hove City Council who hope the development will cut unemployment in the area and attract other businesses to the region.

Access to the plant would be via Basin Road South, which joins the A259 in Hove. The site is currently used for the storage of timber, scrap metal and salt.

A report to Adur District Council's planning committee from officers recommends the plans are delegated to the head of planning for a decision - an unusual move and one that usually signals a local authority's desire to move quickly on granting permission for a project.

If the plans are approved, steel would be processed at the site for customers by being cut, folded and shaped, before being moved out for delivery.

Around 80 per cent of raw materials would arrive at the plant by ship. Once processed, 80 per cent of the steel would be delivered by lorry with the rest travelling by barge.

When the plans were unveiled in November, Jeff Field, of property consultants Cluttons LLP, working on behalf of Parker Steel, said: "Parker Steel did look at other sites but Shoreham is quite a strong location and the port itself is fantastic."

But there is concern from some locals of the impact of the extra lorries on the roads.

The management company for the Western Esplanade in Hove, also known as Millionaires' Row, has sent a letter to the council outlining fears over road safety because of the heavy trucks.

Parker Steel employs 450 staff and has depots across the south, including one at Gatwick. It recently bought Yeowart Steel Stockholders in Crawley and is one of the largest steel stockholders in southern England.

The planning committee is due to meet on January 7 at Adur District Council's Civic Centre, Ham Road, Shoreham, to discuss the plans.

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