Construction work has started on the first purpose-built commercial units for the Plymouth and South Devon (PASD) freeport.

Plymouth council said four units, ranging in size from 750 sq metres to more than 2,000 sq metres, were being built on a plot in Beaumont Way, Langage - one of three freeport low-tax sites.

The development, which is expected to support about 138 full-time jobs, should be completed by autumn 2025.

Eligible tenants must specialise in advanced manufacturing, such as the marine, defence, space and clean energy sectors.

Freeport CEO Richard May said the units showed “the start of real, tangible results”, two years after the project was given the green light.

Last week, Devon County Council (DCC) announced that the PASD received the £25m the government had pledged in seed funding for such projects as the units currently under construction.

The units are part of a scheme costing £8 million, half of which is being financed by the government.

The PASD incorporates three sites – South Yard, at the southern edge of Devonport dockyard, the 48.5-acre site at Langage, which is also the largest, and a ‘logistics facility’ on a 7.9-hectare site in Sherford, on the outskirts of Plymouth.

Freeport firms will enjoy tax breaks on business and employer NI contributions, as well as VAT and tariff benefits, and simplified import procedures.

But critics say the project is progressing too slowly, as the only companies which appear to be on board are the original ‘anchor tenants’, namely Babcock International, Princess Yachts and Carlton Power.

This is despite assurances from Cllr John Birch, South Hams District Council’s executive member for economic development, that more than 100 businesses “have expressed an interest in operating on the site”.

With the latest announcement, he however stressed that firms could now “move forward”, pointing out that Carlton Power’s green hydrogen plant had also been granted planning permission.