Toronto, Ontario, March 5,2021 – GreenBank Capital Inc. (CSE: GBC and OTCMKTS: GRNBF and FRA: 2TL) (“GreenBank” or “the Company”) is pleased to announce that its portfolio company Staminier Limited (“Staminier”), with respect to its option to acquire 13 acres of land near Gatwick Airport, has recently seen market comparable land sales that would value the optioned land at £19.50m (C$34m), if the land is allocated as Strategic Employment Land and up to £39m (C$68m) if and when formal planning/zoning consent is obtained.
The 13-acre parcel of land is surrounded on three sides by 64 acres (see diagram below) which has been included as Strategic Employment Land in the proposed Local Government Plan, of which there have been recent sales for circa £3 million per acre of equivalent land with consented permission.
Staminier intends to apply for the 13 acres to be allocated as Strategic Employment Land and expects the process to be completed by Q1 2022. Given the surrounding land which envelopes the 13 acres has already received this allocation to the Local Government Plan, it is reasonable to expect that the 13 acres would be treated in a similar manner. If such allocation were made, estimating the land value to be a minimum of £19.50m (C$34m) would be conservative by only forecasting 50% of recent sale comparables.
On the basis that Staminier continues to own the option and successfully applies for planning permission, the value could potentially increase to £39m (C$68m).
Staminier acquired the 3-year option on August 27, 2019 to purchase the 13 acres of land for a price of £6 million.
Originally the intent had been to build a car park for Gatwick Airport, but given the exponential growth in Online Purchasing accelerated by COVID-19, the best use will likely be as a Distribution Center for one of the major online retailers or shipment companies to help meet their burgeoning demand for warehousing and storage space and creating significant employment in the area.
Separately on 17th November 2020, Staminier obtained a three-year option to acquire an additional 15 acres of land also near London Gatwick Airport. The option, which expires on 30th November 2023, enables Staminier to buy the land for £3m (C$5.25m). Were Staminier also to obtain similar planning/zoning permissions, this land would be expected to achieve a value per acre of between £1.5m (C$2.63m) and £3m (C$5.25m).
David M. Lonsdale, the CEO of GreenBank Capital, “We are delighted to hear this update on the potential value of the land and congratulate our colleagues at Staminier. The profit potential validates our strategic plan to establish Large Impact Property and Planning Gain as one of “six key drivers of value” for the Company. Defined as: Acquiring options over tracts of land which, with planning permission, would be worth a large multiple of the option price —and then applying for and obtaining planning permission using our highly experienced team.” (Reference our Investor Presentation: https://greenbankcapitalinc.com/investors/investor-presentations/ )
Steve O’Carroll, director of Staminier said “The recent sales activity which supports the potential value of our 13-acre site, is one of the reasons we entered into a further option over the additional 15 acres of land, also close to Gatwick Airport. The need for distribution and Strategic Employment Land centers to support the burgeoning growth of online shopping has never been greater and the location of the land at Gatwick Airport is ideal for this purpose.” (Reference our Press Release: https://greenbankcapitalinc.com/greenbank-capital-portfolio-company-staminier-acquires-option-over-15-acres-of-land-near-london-gatwick-airport-with-the-potential-to-help-meet-burgeoning-storage-demand-from-online-retailers/ )
As previously disclosed, GreenBank currently owns 19% of Staminier Limited and possesses an option to acquire the remaining 81% of the Staminier until April 14, 2021 subject to regulatory approval.
Staminier 13 Acres in yellow