European grant funding is helping a long established Pembrokeshire business to set up a new venture.

Austwel Holdings is building new workshop and office space at the Thornton Industrial Estate in Milford Haven thanks to £383,151 assistance from the South West Wales Property Development Fund.

The move will enable the company to try and attract new development to the area.

"We are building a substantial workshop and offices on a plot in the Priory Park area of the Thornton Industrial Estate," said Austwel Holdings managing director, Chris Davies.

"We have committed our funds in conjunction with the PDF grant to provide this new facility, which will hopefully attract national companies into the area," he said.

Austwel Holdings is the parent company of Austwel Ltd, which has been based in Pembrokeshire for almost 30 years.

Employing around 100 people it provides a wide range of services to all the energy sites along the Haven waterway.

The new move marks a diversification for the company into speculative commercial development.

"In today's economic market we would not be able to do this without the grant assistance we have received from the PDF fund," said Mr. Davies.

The South West Wales Property Development Fund (PDF) has been part funded by the European Regional Development Fund through the Welsh Government.

The scheme, which has been up and running since 2009, hopes to award £8.6m over the coming months to bridge the gap in funding for office and industrial developments across the region.

The regional scheme is led by Carmarthenshire County Council in partnership with Pembrokeshire, Swansea, Neath and Port Talbot local authorities and the Welsh Government.

The programme aims to target speculative developments and priority is given to applications that will provide tangible benefits to the local economy in terms of jobs, premises created and the number of small and medium enterprises accommodated.

Clr. John Allen-Mirehouse, deputy leader and cabinet member for regeneration and economic development for Pembrokeshire County Council, welcomed the grant award.

"The county needs a range of industrial sites and premises to both support existing and attract new companies," he said.

"This development is timely given the Welsh Government's recent announcement of an Enterprise Zone for Pembrokeshire."