Capco completes £425m Earls Court sale 

Capital & Counties has completed the sale of its Earls Court stake for £425m to Delancey and asset manager APG. Capco confirmed it will convert to UK REIT status before the end of 2019. Delancey will now work with TfL, whose interests in the project remain the same – to formulate an entirely new London Plan compliant vision for the site, including the provision of more affordable homes than the existing consents. Delancey’s first action, alongside Stephen Cowan, the leader of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham, has been to terminate the conditional land sale agreement between Capco entities and Hammersmith & Fulham council and to return land to the council which formed part of the previous Earls Court masterplan, including the West Kensington and Gibbs Green housing estates. The Earls Court site comprises over 25 acres of land that formally housed the Earls Court Exhibition Centres. It sits within the boroughs of Hammersmith & Fulham and Kensington & Chelsea, and comprises London’s largest cleared Zone 1 development site. The site comes with existing detailed planning consent, secured a number of years ago as part of the wider Earls Court masterplan. Jamie Ritblat, founder and chief executive of Delancey commented: “We firmly believe that, by virtue of its unrivalled connections, location and scale, Earls Court has the potential to be a world-leading scheme, showcasing the best in sustainable, community focused and environmentally advanced design. ‘’That is not to underestimate the challenges of knitting back in a London landmark, creating an energised commercial destination and vibrant residential community, seeking a balance of pricing that will return Earls Court to Londoners and allow it to once again thrive alongside all its neighbours. There is a lot to be learned from the history of the site as we seek to recreate ingredients that were successful in the past, alongside new ideas for the future.” Ritblat added that Delancey will draw on previous experiences in being a major partner in the delivery of the Olympic Legacy at Stratford, as well as experience redeveloping parts of Elephant & Castle. Cowan added: “Delancey gave me its word and stuck to it by ripping up the conditional land sale agreement, returning the two council estates and ending a 12-year-long nightmare for thousands of our residents. “We’ve always believed the Earls Court site needed a developer with the vision, integrity, and skill to bring something forward that’s really special, rises to the aspirations of our industrial strategy and delivers a beautiful new neighbourhood that works for Londoners. We’re excited to be working with Delancey on this exceptional project.” The deal sees Capco receive initial net proceeds of £156m with £211m to be received over the next two years in two equal instalments, 12 months and 24 months after completion. Having disposed of Earls Court, Capco is now a prime central London property investment business centred on Covent Garden. It said it plans to “capitalise on further investment opportunities” with £900m of fire power made up of cash and undrawn facilities. It has already invested £50m recently through targeted acquisitions at Covent Garden. To send feedback, e-mail anna.ward@egi.co.uk or tweet @annaroxelana or @estatesgazette