QUESTIONS have been asked in the Senedd over a project widening the A465 Heads of the Valleys road, which is almost two years behind schedule and more than £100 million over budget.

Contractor Costain began work to convert a 8km section of the road between Gilwern and Brynmawr - part of a massive £900 million, 20-year scheme widening the road - in late 2014, with the project originally due to be complete last year.

But work fell behind schedule and in 2017 it was announced the completion date had been pushed back to autumn 2019 and the predicted £220 million pricetag had increased by more than £50 million. And last month it was announced the scheme was a further £54 million over budget, taking the total cost to an estimated £324 million and the completion date had been pushed back again, to 2020.

MORE NEWS:

A man was sent to prison over breaching Newport city centre begging ban near cash points, meeting told20-year-old Aaron Naylor from Cwmbran died after taking a lethal cocktail of drugsGwent-based ghost hunters seek out paranormal activity

In response to a question on the issue in the Assembly by South Wales East AM Mohammad Asghar earlier this week, first minister Mark Drakeford said the delays and spiralling costs were "a matter of regret".

Saying "I want to recognise the seriousness of the issue to which he (Mr Asghar) has pointed", he said: "Here was a complex construction scheme where a solution was required to address a particular geographical feature that the company, the contractor, argue was only discoverable once construction had begun.

"It is a matter of regret to the Welsh Government that the contractor has then incurred substantial overspend."

He added: "While we will not now have full completion by the end of this year, the bulk of the work will be completed - a significant bulk of the work will be completed - during 2019 and we expect the remainder of the scheme to be completed in the early part of next year."

The delays have previously been put down to the complicated geographic and geological features of the area.

Work has already been completed on stretches of the road running from Tredegar to Dowlais Top, Abergavenny to Gilwern, and Brynmawr to Tredegar.

Work on sections between Dowlais Top and Hirwaun is due to get underway once the Gilwern to Brynmawr portion is complete.