(Alliance News) - Great Portland Estates PLC on Wednesday said it agreed an option with The Crown Estate which, if exercised by Great Portland Estates, includes a new headlease and development deal for redeveloping two properties in central London.
Shares in Great Portland Estates were up 6.7% to 429.80 pence each in London early Wednesday.
The property developer said its current interests at French Railways House and 50 Jermyn Street are held on leases expiring in 2053 and 2057 respectively at a combined fixed rent of GBP13,250 per year.
The development sits "at the heart of the historic St James's district", Great Portland Estates explained, and forms part of The Crown Estate's strategy to regenerate the wider area.
Great Portland Estates said it secured planning consent for an office-led redevelopment at the two sites in May 2022. It appointed Make Architects to help deliver 66,800 square feet of grade A offices
over the first to seventh floors and two retail/restaurant units located on the ground floor.
"The scheme is designed to embrace the principles of the circular economy through the retention of the existing foundations and basement; and the reuse of structural steel from the deconstruction of the former building on the site of GPE's new development 2 Aldermanbury Square, which is aiming to save up to 99% of the carbon emissions compared with procuring new steel," Great Portland Estates said.
Executive Director Dan Nicholson added: "This is a brilliant opportunity for GPE and The Crown Estate to work in partnership to create best-in-class office and retail space in the heart of St James's.
"Sustainability is at the core of our redevelopment strategy and we are aiming to set a precedent for London by re-using over 1,000 tonnes of structural steel, creating premium spaces that deliver on the needs of our customers, into a market that is increasingly starved of such exceptional properties."
By Greg Rosenvinge, Alliance News reporter
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GPE (GPE)