The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, today welcomed news that the Joint Administrators controlling Battersea Power Station have chosen a preferred bidder to acquire the site with the potential to deliver major economic growth to the capital now and in the future.
The Joint Administrators, Alan Bloom & Alan Hudson, partners at Ernst & Young LLP have accepted a joint bid by Malaysian property developers S P Setia Berhad and Sime Darby Property Berhad and entered into an exclusive agreement to take forward detailed negotiations towards a timely sale of the site and associated land by early July.
This famous and iconic landmark has languished for decades, exchanging hands many times, holding up development and regeneration of the wider Vauxhall and Nine Elms district, identified as one of the Mayor's key Opportunity Areas for growth. Crucially these developers are committed to the construction of a new underground station as part of the proposed extension of the Northern Line.
This is vital to unlocking the potential of the capital's newest district to create thousands of new jobs.
The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said: "Today I believe we see light at the end of the tunnel in the sorry saga that has dogged this great landmark for decades and the surrounding area."There is still detailed work to do but this is an encouraging step forward. In particular the firm commitment on the table to invest in the vital new transport link will drive the regeneration of this important corner of the capital that has been neglected for so long."
Notes to editors
- S P Setia and Sime Darby Property have a period of up to 28 days to conduct further due diligence and investigations as may be deemed necessary, and to negotiate the contract for the acquisition of the Property on terms and conditions acceptable to the parties.
- The joint bidders plans involve the development of a sustainable multi use regeneration project that will provide economic impetus for the creation of a new vibrant centre for south-west central London. The plans will preserve the facade of the historical power plant with its iconic chimney stacks. In addition, the companies have committed to the construction of a new underground station as part of the proposed extension of the London Underground Northern Line.
- S P Setia is one of the leading property developers in Malaysia. To date it has won four international FIABCI Prix d’Excellence Awards and five FIABCI Malaysia Property Awards in addition to being ranked No.1 in The Edge Malaysia Top Property Developers Awards six times. The S P Setia Group currently has projects spread out throughout Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, Vietnam and China, and a representative office in Indonesia.
- Sime Darby Property, Malaysia’s biggest township developer, is now present in a number of countries including Singapore, Australia, Vietnam and the UK. It is the award winning property arm of Sime Darby Berhad, Malaysia’s biggest conglomerate by market value that also has interests in plantation, motors, industrial, energy and utilities as well as healthcare.
MEDIA ENQUIRIES: Information for the media is available from Richard Brookes on 020 7 983 6550/ [email protected]
GENERAL PUBLIC/NON-MEDIA ENQUIRIES: Call the Public Liaison Unit at the Greater London Authority on 020 7983 4100
DUTY PRESS OFFICER: For out-of-hours media enquiries, please call 020 7983 4000