Business
Lease exchanged on Merton freehold property
Lease exchanged on Merton freehold property.
About this update from Panther Securities Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n \n 13 August 2014\n\n Panther Securities PLC \n\n (\"Panther\", the \"Company\" or the \"Group\") \n\n Lease exchanged on Merton freehold property \n\nFurther to the announcement dated 5 August 2014, Panther announces that it has\nexchanged agreements to lease on its freehold in Merton, which was previously\noccupied by Wimbledon Studios Ltd (currently in administration).\n\nWimbledon Studios Ltd, in which Panther has a 25 per cent. interest, was\ncontracted to pay a concessionary rental of £490,000 per annum. The cost of\nchanging from a fixed set filming location to a more modern multi-let\ntelevision and film studio proved far more costly than anticipated and took\nlonger to achieve viability than originally planned. Panther could no longer\ncontinue to support the business, as it felt the business would not reach\nprofitability in the medium term and it was requiring significant funds, which\nthe Panther Board could not justify for a business that was non-core. When the\nfunding from Panther slowed, the directors of Wimbledon Studios Ltd took advice\nand then decided to appoint administrators. Panther has continued to support\nthe Wimbledon Studios situation providing the administrators with additional\nfunds, which has given them more flexibility on the close down, allowing for a\nslower more controlled process, which should be less harmful and assist the\nsmall and medium size businesses in the media village to find alternative\noffices.\n\nThe agreement to lease is a UK television broadcaster who Panther believes is\nexpanding rapidly and has outgrown its current premises. \n\nThe property is to be let at a rental of £1,050,000 per annum under a 15 year\nlease, with tenant break options every 5 years. As part of the leasing\nagreement, the Group is contracted to replace the majority of the roof for £\n500,000 and is also contributing towards the upgrading of the electricity\nsupply capacity, an amount up to £100,000. The tenant is paying two and half\nyears rent in advance, which was a requirement due to the relative short term\ncertain (i.e. 5 years to the break) and the substantial expenditure required to\nbe undertaken to achieve the letting.\n\nCompletion of the lease is conditional on the completion of these works and\nother less costly conditions, which the Panther Board believes are manageable\nin the timefr...