24th Apr 2006 08:56
Slough Estates PLC24 April 2006 SLOUGH ESTATES MOVES INTO WALES ACQUIRES ONE MILLION SQ FT OF BUSINESS SPACE IN CARDIFF FOR £63M Slough Estates International (SEI), a leading provider of flexible businessspace, has completed the off-market purchase of the holding entity of theTreforest Industrial Estate in Cardiff, Wales for £63 million. This is SEI'sfirst entry into the Welsh market and is in line with its strategy to acquirelarge business parks in strategic locations with good revenue streams and strongdevelopment potential. SEI now owns six of the largest industrial estates in the UK including; theSlough Trading Estate, Heywood Distribution Park in Manchester, Woodside inDunstable, Winnersh near Reading and Kings Norton, near Birmingham. Treforest Estate comprises 130 acres with 9.6 acres of development land and islocated adjacent to the A470 Cardiff to Merthyr Tydfil dual carriageway justnorth of Cardiff. It has been an established trading estate since 1936 and is 4miles north of junction 32 on the M4. The estate currently leases space to 97customers, including the BBC, GE, Honeywell, WHSmith, Barclays and Lloyds TSB. With 1 million sq.ft. of business space and a rental income of £4.03 million,the acquisition provides a solid foundation for growth in what is a strongmarket with excellent prospects over the coming years. Representing one of the biggest industrial investments in South Wales, theholding entity of the Estate was acquired from Dunedin Property for £63 million. The news was welcomed by Andrew Davies, Minister for Enterprise, Innovation andNetworks, who said the acquisition by SEI, one of Europe's leading players,would bring new investment to Treforest Industrial Estate, provide long termbenefits and create new employment opportunities in Wales. "SEI has strong environmental credentials, is committed to providing highquality workspace and has a track record of delivering what their customersneed. "This investment will create a high quality working environment and makeTreforest Industrial Estate a very attractive proposition for companiesconsidering locating to Wales as well as providing expansion opportunities forcompanies in Wales." Ian Coull, Chief Executive of SEI commented: "We are delighted to be enteringthe Welsh market. Industrial development in Cardiff is moving from Cardiff Bayto areas in the north of the City Centre and Treforest Estate is ideally placedfor business development. This purchase provides an excellent opportunity withgood quality properties, some high calibre clients and has the potential forfurther development." Advisors on the deal were King Sturge for SEI and Holley Blake for DunedinProperty. -ends- For further information please contact: Slough Estates plc Michael Waring Tel: 01753 213335 The Maitland Consultancy Colin Browne/Liz Morley Tel: 0207 379 5151 Notes to editors Slough Estates is the leading European provider of flexible business space andowns business parks in Europe and North America, with four million square metresof business space and over 1600 customers (as at 31 December 2005). SloughEstates' properties are in suburban locations in close proximity to the mainbusiness centres, where there is long term demand for business accommodation toserve these key economic regions. The company's main activities are currentlybased around London, Brussels, Paris, Dusseldorf, Amsterdam, San Francisco andSan Diego and the company continues to develop new business parks with the longterm objective of building shareholder value and enhancing its reputation forquality buildings offering excellent value to customers. www.sloughestates.com This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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