Cardiff Council has chosen Planet Ice to design, build and operate a new permanent ice arena at the International Sports Village in Cardiff Bay.

The council, Planet Ice and the Cardiff Devils have agreed to work together to deliver a first class facility for the city which can be enjoyed by recreational skaters, the Cardiff Devils and their fans.

Cardiff Council leader Rodney Berman said: "I welcome this decision, which is a huge step forward in delivering a new permanent ice arena for this city. This facility is going to be another visually stunning addition to Cardiff’s range of world class sporting facilities and another crucial piece of the jigsaw in the development of the Cardiff International Sports Village.

"The ice rink was originally part of our plans for a larger multi-purpose arena but when it became clear that it was going to take longer to deliver the rink in that way, we took the decision to instead progress a stand-alone facility. This was important to ensure we could still fulfil our commitment to the users of the rink that we would deliver a permanent ice arena. "

Work is due to begin early next year, subject to planning, with the ice arena to be completed by February 2012.