11th Jan 2006 07:00
Land Securities Group Plc11 January 2006 11 January 2006 Land Securities Group PLC ("Land Securities" / "Group") LAND SECURITIES TRILLIUM AND MILL GROUP FORM JOINT VENTURE PARTNERSHIP Land Securities Group PLC is pleased to announce that its property outsourcingbusiness Land Securities Trillium has reached agreement in principle with MillGroup, a privately held group of companies, to form a 50/50 joint venturecompany, Investors in the Community Group Limited. The new company will expandkey parts of Mill Group's existing business and build on the ongoingcollaboration between the two organisations involving a joint bid for Leeds CityCouncil's £250m Building Schools for the Future ("BSF") project. Land Securities Trillium has identified the BSF programme as a key strategicopportunity and it is expected that the Government will invest up to £2bn peryear in BSF projects over the next decade. Mill Group's Investors in theCommunity ("IIC") programme is regarded as a leader in the BSF and communityPublic Private Partnership ("PPP") markets. In addition to the joint bid onLeeds, the IIC programme is already shortlisted for three other BSF projectswith an anticipated value of circa £350 million. Under the agreement, Mill Group will inject its procurement and schememanagement operations into the joint venture company, together with its existingand potential pipeline of new PPP projects. Land Securities Trillium will alsoacquire a 20% share in Mill Group's current fund asset management business. Thisadministers the one private equity and two institutional funds that haveinvested in the existing IIC schemes. Land Securities Trillium intends to usethe new company to deploy capital into this target market and will have theright to co-invest alongside the active IIC fund. The Board of Land Securities believes that there is substantial synergy betweenthe activities and expertise of both companies. Land Securities Trillium'sfinancial resources and strong track record of property development andmanagement of large property portfolios on behalf of major public and privatesector customers are highly complementary to Mill Group's knowledge andexperience. The combination will provide a compelling new offer to publicsector organisations seeking long-term investment in the improvement anddelivery of community services and regeneration initiatives. Mill Group originally created its Investors in the Community programme to investin education and healthcare facilities that deliver real benefits to localcommunities. Since formation, it has built a strong track record of providingaward-winning, socially responsible education, healthcare and communityprojects, with the completion of some 30 facilities. It now manages a portfoliocomprising ten secondary and six primary schools with a value of about £140m andeighteen local authority and community health sector facilities with a capitalvalue of in excess of £280m, mainly held through the two institutional fundsreferred to above. The consideration payable by Land Securities Trillium will total circa £20m,depending on certain deferred payments relating to the joint venture company'sperformance over a three year period. Following the completion of thetransaction, Land Securities Trillium will be entitled to a 50% share of thejoint venture company's future revenue and profits. Ian Ellis, Chief Executive of Land Securities Trillium, commented: "This newventure will not only accelerate our strategic move into the BSF marketplace butalso substantially increase the potential scope of projects that bothorganisations can now target. By combining Land Securities Trillum's financialand operational strengths and Mill Group's existing expertise and market-leadingposition, we are confident that we can develop a new and compelling offer tomeet the growing appetite for specialist PPP provision and capture a meaningfulshare of the BSF market." David Toplas, Chief Executive of Mill Group and IIC, commented: "We aredelighted to be expanding our Investors in the Community programme through thispartnership with Land Securities Trillium. This will provide us with additionalsupport and expertise in areas such as property outsourcing and regeneration andgive us the ideal platform to grow our existing offer. We are looking forwardto working together to offer a really strong proposition to local authoritiesand others investing in education or community renewal. Our shared skills andenhanced financial capacity will also give us the scope to move into new,evolving areas." For further information, please contact: Land Securities Mill Group /Investors in the Community Ian Ellis/Martin Greenslade/Emma Denne David ToplasTel: +44 (0)20 7413 9000 Tel: +44 (0)20 7255 7570 Financial Dynamics (for Land Securities) Republic (for Mill Group / IIC)Stephanie Highett / Dido Laurimore Pippa GoodmanTel: +44 (0)20 7831 3113 Tel: +44 (0)207 379 5000 / +44 (0)7930 508296 Notes to Editors Land Securities Group PLC Land Securities is a FTSE 100 company, quoted on the London Stock Exchange. Ithas been at the forefront of the UK's commercial property industry for over 60years. Today, the Group maintains its market leading position as the UK's largestquoted property company by providing commercial accommodation and propertyservices to a wide range of occupiers. The Group's objective is to createattractive and sustainable returns for its shareholders through its activities,which include property investment, development and property outsourcing. Land Securities holds a market leading position in three areas of the UKcommercial property market: • Retail, • London offices and • Property outsourcing. Its £11.5 billion combined investment portfolio includes office and retail spacein Central London, 28 shopping centres, 32 retail parks and 11 supermarketproperties located across the UK. It has a substantial development programme including major retail-led urbanregeneration schemes and Central London mixed-use developments. The Group isalso masterplanning one of Europe's largest regeneration schemes in KentThameside. The Group leads the market in property outsourcing where, through LandSecurities Trillium, it provides accommodation and property-related services tothe Department for Work and Pensions, the BBC, Norwich Union, Barclays Bank,DVLA and through Telereal to BT. The Group is committed to environmental initiatives and community involvementrecognised by the Group's inclusion in the BiTC Corporate Responsibility Index,FTSE4Good Index and the Dow Jones Sustainability Index. For more information on Land Securities visit www.landsecurities.com Mill Group - Is a privately owned property and finance group established 13years ago by its chief executive David Toplas. It has focused on the PublicPrivate Partnership ("PPP") programme since its inception, combining assetprocurement and long-term management services with funding from institutionalfunds that it promotes and manages. The Investors in the Community ("IIC") programme, founded by Mill Group threeyears ago and managed by the company, delivers socially responsible PPP and PFIprojects that provide real benefits, through education and healthcare, to localcommunities. Investors in the Community provides: • Partnering and facilities delivery • Long-term investment from in-house institutional funds • Added value through independence and professionalism in construction procurement, service delivery, property development and urban regeneration • Community sponsoring. Investors in the Community is committed to genuine, long-term partnership withthe public sector, funding projects and managing them for the duration of theirworking life. Across the UK, the programme is providing inspiring learningenvironments to 15,000 pupils; healthcare facilities to 2.5 million people;library services to 1 million people; and office accommodation for hundreds ofcouncil workers serving their communities. Its high profile projects includethe new Jubilee Library in Brighton - winner, in 2005, of the Prime Minister'sBetter Public Building Award and the Regeneration Awards' Best Design-ledRegeneration project, as well as being shortlisted for the Stirling Prize. The Investors in the Community programme is backed by long-term investment fundsfrom public and private sector institutional investors including the LondonPensions Fund Authority, Norwich Union/Morley and Clerical Medical/InsightInvestment. For more information on Investors in the Community and Mill Group visitwww.investorsinthecommunity.com. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
Land Securities