Plans for a £50 million Aldi regional headquarters on Sheppey are expected to be submitted to Swale council by the new year.

Earlier this month, we reported that the budget supermarket chain was eyeing land it owns at Neats Court, Queenborough, for a major distribution centre that could create 400 jobs.

Minster Parish Council had a briefing from representatives of the company on December 4, during which Aldi confirmed the proposed development and shared further details.

The 500,000 sq ft facility, on the opposite side of Thomsett Way to Morrisons, is part of a £600 million nationwide investment that could create 35,000 jobs and build 1,000 stores by 2022.

According to minutes from the meeting, Aldi’s representatives said the site would deliver much needed employment opportunities for local people at varying skill levels – from warehouse operatives through to regional managers.

The average salary was given as around £28,000, and there would be also be work available during the construction stage.

Aldi was granted planning permission for a distribution centre in December 2007 as part of the Queenborough and Rushenden regeneration scheme.

The latest bid would involve a more elongated building, and a colour scheme of various shades of green would be used in an effort to ensure the development blended in with the surroundings but also prevented bird strikes.

Solar panels would provide 1.7 megawatts of electricity, which Aldi’s representatives said would meet the site’s energy demands and provide extra power supply that could be sold to the National Grid.

There would be efforts to minimise light pollution, and lakes would be created to support local ecology and harvest rainwater.

The proposed site of the building has been moved backwards to reduce the risk of flooding, and goods would be transported via two lanes, with all daytime deliveries to be completed by 7am when traffic gets busier.

Parish council members said it was an attractive proposal, and welcomed the investment and associated benefits it could bring but would not pre-empt a decision until they looked at the application.