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LONDON, Aug 17 (Reuters) - The British government has firedthe starting gun on a plan to sell its stake in Europe's largestcity-centre redevelopment project around London's King's Crossstation, in its latest disposal aimed at boosting state coffers.
Britain's Department of Transport said the sale of its 36.5percent stake in the 67-acre King's Cross Central LimitedPartnership site, currently being turned into offices andresidential properties, would be a multi-million pound deal,with all proceeds going to the Treasury.
"By selling the government's shares in King's Cross Centralwe are selling an asset we no longer need to keep and realisingits value for the taxpayer. The sale will help reduce thedeficit," Transport Minister Robert Goodwill said in a statementon Monday.
The sale, first announced by the Chancellor George Osbornein June, will be handled by Lazard and real estate advisory firmSavills.
Logistics provider DHL is also selling off its 6 percentstake in the project, which has an estimated potential end valuein excess of 5 billion pounds, Savills said in a statement.
Other shareholders include Australian pension providerAustralianSuper, which holds a 25 percent stake, and ArgentKing's Cross, the estate's asset manager working alongsideHermes Investment Management, which owns a 32.5 percent stake.
Britain is raising money by selling off publicly ownedassets to pay down its national debt and help rebalance thecountry's books. Earlier this year it sold its 40 percent stakein the Eurostar rail link.
The government has already raised more than 16 billionpounds from the sale of shares in state-supported lenders LloydsBanking Group and Royal Bank of Scotland.($1 = 0.6382 pounds) (Reporting by Sarah Young and Sinead Cruise; editing by KateHolton and Simon Jessop)
Savills (SVS)
