SEÁN MULRYAN’S Ballymore Group is to be one of the chief beneficiaries of the British government’s decision to designate the Royal Docks in London as one of 21 new enterprise zones.
The zones, unveiled in the British budget on Wednesday, will have simplified planning rules, super-fast broadband and tax breaks for businesses.
Businesses that open on the site – comprising more than 300 acres of land at the Royal Docks, next to London City Airport – now qualify for reduced rates, making it more attractive for them to open there. That in turn increases land values and makes securing development financing easier.
“Thousands of jobs are expected to be created by this status,” the office of London mayor Boris Johnson said in a statement.
Ballymore director Paul Keogh confirmed it was the largest landowner in the area and said its sites there were collectively known as “the Royals”. The plan covers the 16-acre Unex site, which is 50 per cent owned by Ballymore, with the remainder held through RQB, the private equity vehicle originally set up by developer Paddy Kelly and corporate financier Niall McFadden.
RQB bought its stake in the site for €200 million at then exchange rates in 2007. The lender was Anglo Irish Bank and the site has been transferred to Nama as part of Ballymore’s property loans.
Planning was sought last year for 1,600 homes, a business park, shops and leisure facilities there.
Other sites include Minoco Wharf, where about 3,000 residential units are planned by Ballymore. It also bought a 3.5-acre site at Sunshine Wharf for £16 million in 2008; an 11.1-acre site at Manhattan Wharf, where a development plan is currently being drawn up; and land at Knight’s Road and Vanesta Wharf.
Mr Keogh said the group was awaiting word on whether its land at Leamouth would be included in the zone. Ballymore and its joint venture partner recently got the go-ahead to build more than 1,700 new homes as well as education and leisure facilities on that site.
Ballymore has done a number of debt-for-equity swaps with its lenders in recent months and has also disposed of a number of sites in Britain.
