M&G Real Estate is the preferred bidder to buy Anglo American’s new headquarters at 17 Charterhouse Street, EC1.
Mining company Anglo American instructed BNP Paribas Real Estate to find a buyer for the circa 110,000 sq ft building on a sale and leasback basis in August, with a guide price of around £225m – a net initial yield of around 4.25%.
It is understood M&G will pay above asking price for the asset, following a competitive sales process which attracted nine bids.
The building will be sold along with 27 flats totalling 20,000 sq ft.
Anglo American will commit to a 25-year lease at a rent of £10.7m pa with fixed rental uplifts. The forward-funding opportunity includes a major refurbishment of the existing offices, a planning application for which was submitted last week.
Anglo American will relocate its headquarters to Charterhouse Street after its lease at Carlton House Terrace, SW1, expires in 2020.
The building was originally launched onto the market last year with vacant possession for around £100m.
Situated around the corner from the Hatton Garden diamond district, the property includes a rooftop helipad, and was previously the headquarter of DeBeers and occupied by 1,500 people employed to sort gems from around the world.
Oaktree Capital and Quadrant Estates were in talks to buy the building. However, Anglo American halted the sales process in December after deciding to consider a sale and leaseback.
All parties declined to comment.
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This article was first published on 13 November.
