Costain has been chosen to design and construct a new junction on the M5 to serve Agratas's planned gigafactory in Somerset, under a contract worth approximately £100 million over five years.

Awarded via National Highways' Regional Delivery Partnership (RDP) framework, the scheme will create Junction 22A between Burnham-on-Sea and Bridgwater. It will provide access to the Gravity Smart Campus and Agratas's £4bn gigafactory, set to be Britain’s largest electric vehicle battery manufacturing facility.

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The new junction will feature north-facing slip roads and is intended to ease congestion on the M5 to the south of the River Huntspill.

As delivery integration partner and main works contractor, Costain will design and build the junction before handing it over to National Highways. Its scope includes design, engineering, programme delivery and supply chain management, with WSP supporting as design partner.

Alex Vaughan, Chief Executive Officer of Costain, said: "This award is built on our long-established highways delivery expertise and trusted partner relationship with National Highways. We will work closely with our supply chain partners to design and deliver this new junction that will provide access to the new gigafactory and help to drive economic growth in this region of the UK.

"This investment, supporting the UK's growth ambitions, is another example of Costain's commitment to deliver critical national infrastructure programmes that improve people’s lives."