A hotly anticipated new attraction has been built in Swansea after three years of work. A substantial part of the former Hafod Morfa Copperworks site has now been transformed and the keys have been handed to "world-class" whisky business, Penderyn Distillery.
The Penderyn Distillery buildings were saved, improved, and newly built on behalf of Swansea Council on the historic site which dates back to 1809. The huge Welsh whisky brand is now installing equipment that will help make the location an operational distillery and destination for visitors.
It will be the third Penderyn Distillery to open in Wales as there are already two sites, one in the south Wales village of Penderyn, and another in the heart of Llandudno, North Wales. They are open seven days a week and offer distillery tours and masterclasses, and plans are in place to open the doors of the Swansea distillery this summer.
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A spokesperson for the business said they were delighted to be a part of the history of one of Swansea's greatest heritage sites. You can get more Swansea news and other story updates straight to your inbox by subscribing to our newsletters here.
A team of conservation artisan tradesmen worked "tirelessly" to overcome reconstruction challenges of the listed buildings, according to a spokesperson for John Weaver Contractors, which carried out the work on behalf of Swansea Council. Some structures seemed to be beyond repair at times and archaeological artefacts were also unearthed, added the spokesperson.
Cllr Rob Stewart, Swansea Council Leader, said: “We’re delighted to hand over this exceptional site to Penderyn Distillery. I’m confident that, using their knowledge and expertise as one of Wales’ great modern success stories, this important heritage site will become a fantastic visitor attraction for Swansea.”
The project received £4m in funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund and £500k from Welsh Government economy and transport funding to transform the industrial site which once made Swansea a copper-making world superpower in the 18th and 19th centuries. Additional works to other historical buildings as part of the project have been supported by Welsh Government targeted regeneration investment funding.
The Lower Swansea Valley became the world-leading centre for copper smelting in the 18th century. The Hafod-Morfa Copperworks site is of international importance, becoming the world’s largest copperworks in the latter part of the 19th century and early 20th century.
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