RLAM sells £315m Southall data centre site

Royal London Asset Management Property has closed a round of industrial and logistics transactions worth more than £350m, including the sale of a circa £315m West London site earmarked for a data centre. The company has sold 33.6 acres (13.6ha) of industrial and logistics assets in Southall. The portfolio represents a prime freehold data centre redevelopment opportunity centred around International Trading Estate, on Brent Road. RLAM has also partnered with Canmoor Developments to acquire a 4.16-acre brownfield site in Havant from the administrators of Dunham-Bush Ltd, for just over £5.1m. The Havant acquisition will pave the way for the development of three grade-A industrial facilities, providing 104,320 sq ft of lettable floor area. The new development will be targeting EPC A+ and BREEAM Outstanding. RLAM has also leased out its newly-developed units (pictured) at Springfield Business Park in Chelmsford on a 10-year lease. An unnamed stationery and furniture supplier to schools and colleges has taken 36,000 sq ft to establish its new head office and use the warehouse for storage and distribution of stock. The wider Chelmsford scheme has a £30m GDV. James Orr, head of industrial and logistics at RLAM Property, said: “We are extremely proud of the latest sector transactions as this pivot into development stock is a key component of our strategy. By rotating out dry investments through sales and recapitalisation, we aim to generate higher returns.” RLAM manages more than 17m sq ft of industrial and logistics across the UK, with the majority of sites located in the South East. Recent transactions include the acquisition of the 24-acre Abbey Works site in Fareham and the sale of a 1.2m sq ft national portfolio of industrial and logistics assets to Ares Management. See occupational sale comparables in Southall >> Photo © Royal London Asset Management