Amazon eyes new logistics hub at Port of Cardiff
Amazon is considering a deal with Associated British Ports to take a new 500,000 sq ft hub in the Port of Cardiff, as vacancy rates for Welsh industrial space hit a record low.
The e-commerce giant is understood to be considering the space as part of ABP’s initiative to market more than 1,000 acres across its portfolio for logistics, manufacturing and energy development schemes.
A deal would see Amazon take much of the 36 acres ABP has freed up at the port’s ABP Business Park. A final deal has yet to be agreed, according to people familiar with the situation.
Amazon is considering a deal with Associated British Ports to take a new 500,000 sq ft hub in the Port of Cardiff, as vacancy rates for Welsh industrial space hit a record low.
The e-commerce giant is understood to be considering the space as part of ABP’s initiative to market more than 1,000 acres across its portfolio for logistics, manufacturing and energy development schemes.
A deal would see Amazon take much of the 36 acres ABP has freed up at the port’s ABP Business Park. A final deal has yet to be agreed, according to people familiar with the situation.
An ABP spokesman said there is currently no lease agreement in place for the site, but it added the company “is looking forward to working collaboratively with businesses that want to take advantage of this strategic location and the benefits of being within the Port of Cardiff”.
A spokesman for Amazon said the company would not comment on market speculation.
ABP is also marketing land at ports including Southampton, Hull, Liverpool and Newport. Speaking to EG in March, chief executive Henrik Pedersen said: “We are blessed with good locations. We looked at this massive land bank – that’s literally land that has not been used for 50 or 60 years – and said, ‘This smells like untapped opportunities’.”
Across Wales, take-up of industrial space during the first quarter of 2022 stood at 325,300 sq ft, down by more than a third year-on-year, according to Knight Frank. The market has the lowest vacancy rate on record, the agency said, which should encourage developers to undertake new schemes.
Last year, Amazon took a record 13.1m sq ft of real estate in the UK, according to analysis from Savills. So far in 2022, the agency has tracked Amazon deals of just over 372,000 sq ft and said its share of the market has fallen dramatically.
Kevin Mofid, head of industrial research at Savills, said: “In 2020 and 2021, Amazon accounted for 25% and 24% of take-up respectively, however by contrast the first quarter of 2022 has seen the online retailer account for just 3% of the market. Despite this, Q1 still saw record levels of take-up proving the range of occupiers continuing to take space.”
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