The letting of the Vertium Building, a 172,000 square foot building on Burlington Road to Amazon last year, triggered a profit payment entitlement in a range of between £4-5 million for UK property developer U+I.
In a trading update issued to the London Stock Exchange on Wednesday, the developer disclosed that the letting of the building contributed to its gains in the year so far. The company is expected to provide further information at its full year results in April.
Last May U+I (formerly Development Securities) agreed to let the 15,992sq m (172,000sq ft) building to US e-commerce giant Amazon for €50 per sq ft, in what was one of the biggest letting deals of the year.Last May U+I (formerly Development Securities) agreed to let the 15,992sq m (172,000sq ft) building to US e-commerce giant Amazon for €50 per sq ft, in what was one of the biggest letting deals of the year.
The € 40.5 million Burlington Road site was acquired in June 2014, by developer Johnny Ronan in a joint venture with U+I , Paddy McKillen and Colony Capital.
Dublin makes up about 16 per cent of U&I’s development and trading portfolio. Last year U&I made a profit in Ireland of £5 million and forecast a surplus for the 2017 financial year of £4 million from its various projects in Ireland, including the sale of a development at Percy Place in Dublin, activity at its Robswall residential project in Malahide.
In the update on Wednesday, the UK developer, which concentrates on the London, Manchester and Dublin markets, said that development and trading gains realised in the 2017 financial year are “within the range of guidance” laid out at the interim results in October 2016, but added the caveat “albeit at the lower end of the range”.
Matthew Weiner, chief executive of U+I said he was “encouraged” by the company’s performance in 2017.
“U+I is well positioned to make strong progress in the year ahead and is committed to delivering sustainable returns to shareholders as we create long lasting social and economic change for the communities in which we work,” he said.
