WORK to build a new supermarket distribution centre on the outskirts of Southampton will begin within weeks, the Daily Echo can reveal.

Building work on the Lidl depot, which will create 400 jobs, is expected to begin as early as next month.

The plans for the 24-hour centre were given the green light in early 2013 but negotiations over funding by Lidl towards local infrastructure had held the plans up for the best part of a year.

But now that agreements have been reached with both Southampton City Council and Test Valley Borough Council, work can begin early next year and the new centre is expected to be completed in late 2014. The 43,000 square metre depot will be built on land next to the M271 motorway at Nursling.

Lidl signed a deal with landowners Barker-Mill Estates last year.

The supermarket says the facility will create 300 full-time positions and 100 part-time jobs.

Work to build the depot will also see Brownhill Way widened into a dual carriageway between the M271 and Adanac roundabout, while there will be cycle and pedestrian improvements.

More than 2.5 hectares of land around the site will also be landscaped, with trees, fences and an earth mound being added to obscure views of the centre.

Lidl’s regional property director Oliver McGuinness said: “Having confirmed the legal agreements, we are delighted to have been granted formal planning permission from both local authorities.

“This development will create hundreds of new jobs for the region and bring many benefits to the community.”

Business chiefs in Hampshire have also welcomed the news.

Business Solent chief executive Sally Lynskey said: “At a time of so much economic uncertainty, it is hugely beneficial that a development such as this is given the green light – it is a really positive piece of news for the region.”

And Russell Kew, Solent LEP director, said: “In December last year the Solent LEP published our strategy for growth which outlined our vision for the area. Job creation is at the core of this strategy and we hope to see an additional 10,000 new jobs created in the Solent area in the period to 2026, and we welcome the 400 jobs that the proposed Lidl distribution centre will bring to the area.”