Construction firm Sir Robert McAlpine is converting the dry slopes at Hemel Ski Centre in Bennetts End, Hertfordshire, into a £23m hub for indoor skiing and snowboarding.

Called The Snow Centre, it will boast a 160m indoor ski slope – graded for all levels of experience, a100m nursery slope, large video screens that show winter sports, two drag lifts and a rope tow on the trainer slope.

The centre will also house retail store Snow & Rock, a restaurant overlooking the slopes, bars, coffee shops and meeting rooms. It also have a grass roof that covers the length of the slope so to blend the centre into its natural landscape.

The temperature of the Snow Centre will be maintained just below freezing to preserve around 500mm of real snow on the slopes.

David Surrey, director of the Hemel Ski Centre and the driving force behind the project says: “Indoor slopes are the future for skiing and snowboarding in Britain. Our aim is to create a superb facility that will allow people to enjoy the sport all year round.”

The project is being back by NatWest bank and has taken two years to plan in consultation with Sir Robert Alpine and Dacorum Borough Council. It will open April 2009.