St Modwen Properties (SMP) has revealed that planning agreements and commercial contracts are now unconditional for the regeneration of its 57-acre joint venture development scheme at New Covent Garden Market.
This means that work on the site can start this summer. Not only will the existing market receive a 500,000 sq ft state-of-the art facility over 37 acres, but the remaining area will be developed into 3,000 new homes, 135,000 sq ft of office space and 100,000 sq ft of retail, leisure and new community facilities. The whole scheme is expected to have a gross development value of up to £3bn.
This means that St Modwen's half share will be recognised on the balance sheet, and analysts at Numis estimate that this will boost net asset value by around £100m this year, or 45p a share. The broker also reckons that profits will grow by around 80 per cent this year and net asset value by a quarter.
