LIVERPOOL will learn if its lucrative bid to host the world's first 'green' bank has been successful by the end of March.
The timetable for a decision on the headquarters of the £3bn Green Investment Bank (GIB) - to fund major renewable energy projects - was revealed yesterday alongside the criteria for making a successful application.
Bidders were told they must prove they were able to:
Recruit and retain the specialist staff needed to run the organisation.
Work closely with other parties involved in projects, such as other investment organisations, developers and green technology providers.
Offer a location that provides good value for money to ensure the GIB is "cost effective".
Vince Cable, the Business Secretary, said: "I want to set up the Bank as soon as possible, so it can start accelerating investments in these key sectors and help British companies take advantage of these opportunities.
There is a great opportunity for British businesses to lead the transition to a green economy and stake a claim on a sector that has massive potential for growth."
The Daily Post revealed last month that Liverpool was going into battle with 20 other towns and cities - including two nearby rivals - for the right to host the GIB.
The Bank will only deliver a relatively small number of new jobs.
But the real prize is the prestige that hosting the Bank would bring, acting as a powerful magnet to attract low-carbon businesses to the city-region.
In his application letter Liverpool's Labour leader Joe Anderson argued the city had a "compelling case", pointing out it was already a "thriving financial centre in its own right".
The city council has also made government support for Liverpool as a location for the GIB a key priority in talks with Nick Clegg on a "city deal" to devolve power from Whitehall.
But the full list of towns and cities that have expressed an intention to lodge bids already has 22 names - stretching from Scotland to the South Coast and including Leeds, Manchester, Bristol and Edinburgh.
They include Warrington, which will argue it is a "prime location" with excellent transport links and "a town which consistently out-performs most of the rest of the UK in terms of economic indicators".
The third 'expression of interest' in the North West has come from Chester - although not from Cheshire West and Chester Council.
Mr Cable said that offshore wind power generation, waste processing, energy from waste generation and the 'Green Deal' for energy efficient homes would be the first priorities for the Bank.
