The firm has also unveiled detailed plans for the development which will be built in two phases.

Construction of the ice arena – the first phase of the scheme – should start next March and be completed in time for the start of the 2014/15 ice hockey season for the Cardiff Devils.

Work will include two ice pads, with the main rink measuring 60m by 30m, with seating for 3,100. The second pad will span 56m by 27m.

The second phase – which should be completed by 2016/2017 – includes two real snow ski slopes, a 1,800sqm “snow world” for children, as well as shops, restaurants, two hotels and a plaza. There will also be a multi-storey car park with 1,600 spaces.

The ski slope will measure 160m by 45m, with a 50m by 50m nursery slope. A cafe will overlook the nursery slope and give panoramic views out across the Bay.

Greenbank Partnerships’ Jonathan Smith said the scheme would set a new benchmark for winter leisure complexes.

He told walesonline.co.uk: “We are raising the quality so that you don’t feel that you are in a tin shed – you will be able to look out over the Bay while you are skiing.

“There is no point building another scheme like at Milton Keynes or Tamworth, they are the old school of how it was done. There is a lot more competition for money now and we have to rise to that challenge.”

Beneath the ski slope will be a 130-bedroom three star hotel and the complex will be designed around a public plaza with amphitheatre and covered arcade walkways.

A residential development, known as Cardiff Pointe, will be built on the peninsula next to the winter sports complex.

Two apartment towers standing 18 and 24 storeys high, as well as a mixture of townhouses and detached homes.

A planning application will be submitted in May and construction should start before Christmas.