Beltane begins €142m spec development in Central London

Beltane Asset Management has appointed construction firm VolkerFitzpatrick to begin construction of a 80,000 sq ft (7,430 m2) office scheme at 24 King William Street in London.

The project, which is undertaken in partnership with Angelo, Gordon & Co., has an estimated gross development value of £100 mln (€142 mln) and is due to complete in the second quarter of 2017.

The nine storey building with efficient floor-plates of around 8,500 sq ft, includes 10,000 sq ft of retail and leisure space.

'Site works have begun and we are confident of this building’s success given the shortage of quality space coming to the market in the City,' said Beltane co-founder Duncan Roe. 'The location means the building will be attractive for both financial and insurance occupiers but also more creative corporate occupiers attracted by its close location to the South Bank.'

CBRE and GM Real Estate are advising Beltane.

Central London has seen vacancies fall to 2.8% over the past 12 months, according to research from broker CBRE. In the second quarter of 2015, supply fell to only 9.9 million sq ft, its lowest level since 2001.

values in Central London’s booming office market grew by 10.3% in the year to October 2015, the first time annual growth has hit double digits since April 2008. ‘We are in the midst of an upward cycle and have seen huge levels of capital investment and rental growth in the last few years. This is largely thanks to a spike in demand fuelled by the economic recovery and increased confidence in businesses,’ said Kevin McCauley, CBRE's head of Central London Research. ‘Increasingly, occupiers with large requirements have got to resort to development projects to find a suitable office.’