Firethorn Trust expands logistics portfolio with Peterborough site purchase for £60M speculative development

Real estate investor and developer, Firethorn Trust, has acquired a new 21 acre site in Peterborough, taking its current development portfolio to more than 2 million sq. ft.

Purchased from O&H Properties, the site at Kingston Park in Hampton sits adjacent to existing occupiers including Amazon, IKEA and DART. It offers excellent connectivity, being located within two miles of the A1 (M) at Junction 17.

Benefiting from an existing employment allocation, the planning process will commence imminently for a c.500,000 sq ft logistics park with delivery of new units scheduled for mid-2022.

Kingston Park is Firethorn’s fourth site, joining Northampton Cross in Milton Ham and Ascent Logistics Park in Leighton Buzzard – both due for completion later this year – and follows the recent acquisition of Link Logistics Park in Ellesmere Port, taking the developer’s current development pipeline to 2.15m sq. ft.

Peter Mather, Partner at Firethorn Trust, said: “Peterborough is one of the fastest growing cities in the UK and has developed into a significant regional commercial location due to its excellent road connectivity and strong labour supply. Our plans to develop a highly-specified logistics park are designed to boost investment within the region, as we look to meet increasing occupier demand for quality, modern and sustainable midbox spaces, as well as drive employment opportunities for the local community.

“2020 created unique challenges throughout the industrial sector and we are proud to starting the year on such a positive note by bolstering our rapidly growing logistics portfolio. We look forward to increasing our nationwide presence further with a number of additional strategic sites over the coming months.”

Firethorn Trust was advised by LSH and Stephenson Harwood. O&H Properties was represented by Savills and Mills & Reeve.