Henry Boot looks to deliver £1bn worth of industrial and logistics sites as part of new joint venture
Sheffield-based construction firm Henry Boot has announced a new joint venture it hopes can deliver around £1bn worth of industrial and logistics developments across the UK over the next seven years.
The company has announced its property investment and development arm HBD has formed a new platform called Origin after entering into a joint venture partnership with Feldberg Capital, which specialises in rapidly scaling sustainability-focused real estate ventures in high growth sectors.
The venture will be seeded with an initial portfolio of three sites from HBD's pipeline including a nine-acre plot at Markham Vale, a business park development off the M1 to the south of Sheffield.
The assets will include the Ark development site at Markham Vale, which has planning consent for four units totalling 107,000 sq ft.
Also included in the deal is 13-acre development site off the M6 near Walsall and a three-acre site by Welwyn Garden City.
HBD has a 25 per cent share of the JV and Feldberg will hold a 75 per cent share. HBD will be the development manager, receiving fees for doing so, and Felberg will act as investment manager.
In a statement to the London Stock Exchange, Henry Boot said: “The three initial sites have the potential to deliver approximately c.450,000 sq ft of prime I&L space, with construction on each due to commence in H1 2025 for delivery from H2 2025.
"Going forward, the partnership will draw on both HBD's development pipeline as well as acquire sites from third parties for further pre-let and speculative I&L development.
"For each project, development finance will be procured from an external lender. The intention, subject to market conditions, is to deliver c.£1bn of high quality I&L schemes across the UK over the next seven years.
"HBD has the right to co-invest in future projects on the same ownership split as the seed portfolio, whilst retaining the role of development manager.”
Tim Roberts, CEO at Henry Boot, said: "The launch of this new industrial and logistics platform with Feldberg Capital is an important transaction for Henry Boot, allowing us to partner with a first-class international investor with the funds and ambition to invest alongside us into one of our key sectors.
"At the same time, it enables us to accelerate our own £1.3bn industrial and logistics pipeline and in turn recycle capital more efficiently. We now look forward to fulfilling our significant ambitions for Origin alongside the team at Feldberg."
David Turner, Managing Partner at Feldberg Capital, said: "Having held back from the industrial and logistics market while assets looked overpriced, we believe now is a highly attractive entry point, with land values having come down over the last 24 months and entry yields being at more sustainable levels.
"The positive tailwinds within the sector remain, driven by structural trends including the continued growth of e-commerce and more firms serving the UK market looking to 'onshore' their production here in the face of a shifting regulatory and geopolitical backdrop.”