Property Disposal

RNS Number : 1214E

Wilmington PLC

04 May 2017

 

4 May 2017

Wilmington plc

Property Disposal

Wilmington plc ("Wilmington" or "the business") the provider of information, education and networking services in Risk & Compliance, Professional, and Healthcare knowledge areas confirms it has exchanged contracts to sell the leasehold interest in its Underwood Street London head office premises for £7.3m in cash as part of project 6^th Gear. Completion is expected by the end of June 2017.

At the same time as disposing of its leasehold interest, Wilmington is entering into a new ten-year market rate lease for a London head office premises near Aldgate. The new head office space will accommodate Wilmington's London based businesses whilst retaining the training facility recently acquired with the acquisition of SWAT Group Limited. The transactions are expected to be broadly cash neutral over the first five years of the new lease. 

The disposed leasehold premises have a book value of £1.5m. The proceeds of £7.3m before tax, fit out and disposal costs which are estimated at £3.8m will be used to initially reduce the Group's debt, whilst providing greater acquisition and investment capacity in line with its stated strategy.  The new building will be operational from 31 December 2017.

Pedro Ros, Chief Executive Officer, Wilmington plc commented:

"The disposal of our Underwood Street premises is a key milestone for project 6^th Gear and a major step in our drive to promote a more unified business. We are looking forward to occupying our new head office space which will reflect a modern working environment, encourage closer collaboration, and emphasise our core values and culture."

The information communicated in this announcement is inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of Market Abuse Regulation No. 596/2014

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For further information, please contact:

Wilmington plc   Pedro Ros, Chief Executive Officer Tony Foye, Chief Financial Officer FTI Consulting Charles Palmer / Emma Appleton / Adam Davidson

020 7422 6800 020 3727 1000

Notes to Editors

Wilmington plc is the recognised knowledge leader and partner of choice for information, education and networking in Risk & Compliance, Professional and Healthcare areas. Capitalised at approximately £230 million, Wilmington floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1995.

 

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