Ballymore moves closer to Nama exit

A €547 million London property deal struck by Seán Mulryan's Ballymore Properties has moved the group closer to exiting the National Asset Management Agency (Nama) this year.

Ballymore and a new firm, Eco World Investment Company, backed by Malaysian players Tan Sri Liew Kee Sin and Dato' Voon Tin Yow, have agreed a €2.8 billion deal to develop three residential projects in the British capital.

Under its terms, the Irish company will receive a 25 per cent stake in the joint venture, Eco World Ballymore, and be paid €547 million for its interest in the three developments, Arrowhead Quay in Canary Wharf, phase two of London City Island on the Leamouth Peninsula and phase two of the Embassy Gardens in Nine Elms.

It is understood the Irish property development company will use much of the money raised from the transaction to repay debt due to Nama.

Repayment target

Ballymore would not comment yesterday, but when the company launched London City Island in late 2013, executive

Paul Keogh

said that it had set its sights on repaying the agency by the middle of this year.

Eco World’s Tan Sri Liew Kee Sin and Dato’ Voon Tin Yow previously held key roles in SP Setia, which in 2012 bought Battersea Power Station from administrators appointed by Nama and Lloyd’s Bank.

Battersea's biggest shareholder was Real Estate Opportunities, the quoted vehicle controlled by the Johnny Ronan and Richard Barrett-backed Treasury Holdings. Nama and Lloyds were owed €380 million by the landmark site's owners.

The Malaysian businessmen set up Eco World late last year. Under the terms of its agreement with Ballymore, the Irish property company will develop and manage the three projects, as well as retaining a stake in the joint-venture vehicle.

It is expected that all three projects will be ready for sales launch in 2015, delivering about 2,800 new residential units and 250,000 sq ft of commercial, leisure and office space.

Mr Mulryan, chairman and group CEO of Ballymore, commented: “This is a significant deal for Ballymore, not only due to the substantial proceeds it will generate for this firm, but also in terms of providing a successful template for how projects such as these can be developed jointly in the future”.

Mr Liew confirmed that Ballymore invited his company to jointly develop the three sites.

Extensive expertise

“Ballymore specialises in large-scale residential projects and has extensive expertise developing schemes within many of the most important regeneration areas in central London,” he said.

Ballymore also owns and manages a substantial portfolio of developments across London, with approximately 3,000 units currently under construction and a further 8,000 units in its land bank. It is also developing about 650,000 sq ft of office space and about 300 homes adjacent to the new Central Bank HQ on North Wall Quay in Central Dublin.

Eco World was incorporated in November and will focus initially on the British and Australian markets. It is intended to float it in Malaysia as a special purpose acquisitions vehicle.