DEVELOPERS are planning to a transformation of a huge industrial site in Hampshire by building more than 1,000 homes and a luxury marina.

Long Harbour spent £25million on the old Fawley power station complex, which occupies 300 acres of land on the western shores of Southampton Water.

The London-based investment company is drawing up proposals to bulldoze the 43-year-old building and replace it with a showpiece development.

The future of the power station has been the subject of intense speculation since it closed three years ago with the loss of 40 jobs after failing to meet new environmental standards.

Plans to redevelop the site are still at an early stage and a planning application is unlikely to be submitted for several months.

But Long Harbour has confirmed that it intends to use the land for housing and leisure.

A company spokesman said: “Long Harbour is working towards an application for outline consent for a mixed-use development including over 1,000 residential units, commercial space and an active leisure marina.

“Long Harbour is excited at the prospect of developing the site, which has real potential to be a major contributor to the area’s economy.”

But the scheme could face opposition from locals worried about hundreds of new homes being built on the edge of the New Forest National Park, plus the impact of extra traffic.

The power station is almost at the end of the busy A326 - often dubbed the longest cul-de-sac in the country.

Long tailbacks build-up in the rush-hour, while accidents and roadworks also lead to major congestion in the area.

Fawley councillor Alexis McEvoy acknowledged that traffic was likely to be an issue but welcomed proposals to use the site to provide homes and jobs.

She said: “It’s an exciting, innovative scheme that will be of a great benefit to the area.

“My understanding is that it’s not just houses that are being proposed. They’re also hoping to use part of the site for cottage industries and thus create jobs for local people.”

Allan Glass, a member of Fawley Parish Council, added: “Provided the infrastructure can take it I think it’s a brilliant idea.”

The power station - one of Hampshire’s biggest buildings - includes a huge turbine hall, a 650ft chimney and a circular control room that resembles a flying saucer.

The oil-fired facility started operating in 1972 and closed in 2013.

Described as one of the most efficient power stations in the UK it had the capacity to generate 1,000MW of electricity for the National Grid - enough to meet the needs of more than one million households.

In 2014 it was used by the makers of the latest Mission Impossible film starring Tom Cruise as secret agent Ethan Hunt.

The moviemakers were based there for almost a month, most of which was taken up with painstaking preparation.

Following six days of actual filming the power station appears in the film for about eight minutes.

One of the scenes features 53-year-old Cruise leaping off a crane and diving into a whirlpool - courtesy of groundbreaking special effects.