Meadowhall stake said to be on market
Property giant British Land is reported to be selling a stake in one of the UK’s largest shopping centres, Meadowhall in Sheffield, as it tries to ease its debt burden.
The retail, office and business park developer is understood to be close to selling a 50% share of Meadowhall in Sheffield for around £550m.
According to one report, the deal would be with a joint venture between an Abu Dhabi fund and investment firm London & Stamford.
The news comes after reports last week said property giant Land Securities was in talks to sell its one-third stake in the Bullring shopping centre in Birmingham to overseas investors for around £200m.
It is understood the Australian government-backed Future Funds is negotiating for the share.
Both companies are likely to have to accept substantially lower prices for the property than they would have done previously.
British Land valued the entire Meadowhall shopping centre at £1.4bn late last year, representing a 7.4% drop in the six months to September 30.
And Land Securities put the Bullring share onto the market last April for around £300m.
British Land also owns the Bon Accord, Aberdeen, as well as city centre offices and industrial complexes across the country.
The company posted a pre-tax loss of £1.33bn in the six months to September 30, including valuation write-downs, but a £144m pre-tax profit when these were stripped away.
