TIDMHLCL
RNS Number : 8473F
Helical PLC
13 July 2023
13 July 2023
HELICAL PLC
("Helical" or the "Company")
Trading Update for the Period Since 1 April 2023
Ahead of its Annual General Meeting ("AGM") which will take
place at 9:00am today, Helical provides an update covering its
trading activity for the period 1 April 2023 to 12 July 2023 ("the
Period").
Commenting on the Company's activities, Gerald Kaye, Chief
Executive, said:
"Since the start of the financial year we have made good
progress with our development pipeline, which totals almost 800,000
sq ft, of "best-in-class" office space to be delivered into an
undersupplied market over the course of the next 5-6 years.
"With planning permission now formally granted at 100 New Bridge
Street, EC4, we are on track to take vacant possession of the
building in Q4 and commence a comprehensive refurbishment to create
a carbon friendly building due to complete in Q2, 2025.
"Our joint venture with Transport for London ("TfL") has also
seen progress with contracts signed earlier this week, confirming
Helical as TfL's chosen development partner.
"On the letting front, we have one further floor under offer at
The JJ Mack Building, EC1 and good interest in the remaining
space."
Operational Performance
Development pipeline progressing with construction work at 100
New Bridge St to commence in Q4
-- Planning permission has been granted for our next
"best-in-class" comprehensive office refurbishment at 100 New
Bridge Street, EC4, located adjacent to City Thameslink and the
London Underground at Blackfriars Station as well as a short walk
from the Elizabeth Line at Farringdon station. The carbon friendly
building, to be completed in Q2 2025, will provide 192,000 sq ft of
office space across 10 storeys, including two new floors which will
benefit from exceptional views of St. Paul's Cathedral.
Construction work is anticipated to commence in Q4 2023 once
current office tenant Baker McKenzie vacates the building. The
building will target BREEAM Outstanding, NABERS 5 Star, EPC A and
WELL Platinum, as well as achieving the RIBA 2030 Built Target
(A1-A5) of 475 kgCO2e/m2.
-- Further to the announcement on 15 February 2023 that
Transport for London ("TfL")'s wholly owned commercial property
company had selected Helical as its preferred development partner
for its sustainable commercial office portfolio across central
London, contracts have now been signed confirming Helical as the
joint venture partner. The partnership will see the delivery of new
high-quality and sustainable office space above or close to London
Tube stations, which currently consist of three new commercial
office developments at Bank, Paddington and Southwark, totalling
600,000 sq ft. All three sites have full planning permission to
deliver sustainable commercial office developments that provide
exceptional workplaces and positively impact the local community.
The three schemes are:
o Bank OSD - located above the recently opened Bank station
entrance on Cannon Street. This eight storey office development
will deliver 142,000 sq ft NIA and is scheduled to start on site in
2024.
o Southwark OSD - located above Southwark Tube station. The
scheme has consent for a 220,000 sq ft NIA hybrid timber office
building over 17 storeys. The development is expected to start on
site in 2025.
o Paddington OSD - located on the Grand Union Canal, close to
the Elizabeth Line station at Paddington. This 19-storey building
will provide 235,000 sq ft NIA of office space and construction is
expected to commence in 2026.
Leasing momentum maintained in line with ERVs
-- In the Period we have completed four new lettings totalling
9,967 sq ft NIA, delivering contracted rent of GBP557,000 in line
with 31 March 2023 ERVs. Lettings include:
o Three lettings totalling 7,443 sq ft NIA at The Loom, E1.
o The letting of a retail unit comprising 2,524 sq ft at The
Bower, EC1 to pasta restaurant, Noci.
-- At The JJ Mack Building, EC1 the 13,408 sq ft ninth floor is
now under offer. The sixth and seventh floors of 37,880 sq ft are
let to Partners Group, a leading private equity firm, and there is
good interest in the remaining space.
Final residential sale completed at Barts Square
-- At Barts Square, EC1 we have completed the sale of the final
residential apartment in this 236-unit residential scheme.
Continued strong rent collection
-- As at 12 July 2023, we had collected 97.4% of the June
quarter rent and expect to collect a further 1.5% via agreed
payment plans, with the remaining 1.1% under discussion.
Financing
Sustainably Linked GBP400m Revolving Credit Facility ("RCF")
At 30 June 2023, the Group had drawn GBP230m under its RCF with
an effective interest rate of 3.0% and a maturity of 3.1 years. The
RCF benefits from interest rate swaps at an average of 0.9% plus
margin on 100% of the drawn amount for the remaining term of the
facility to July 2026.
Other Facilities
In our joint ventures, we had drawn GBP61.2m of the GBP69.9m
(our share) facility with PIMCO to develop The JJ Mack Building,
EC1. Following practical completion of the development on 30
September 2022, the effective interest rate on the loan is 4.2%,
including commitment fees on the undrawn amount, reducing to 2.25%
when fully let.
At 30 June 2023, the Group had c.GBP49m of cash and GBP189m of
undrawn loan facilities with an overall weighted average cost of
debt of 3.3% and an average maturity of 2.6 years.
Sustainability
We are progressing well against our sustainability commitment
and in recognition of this were included in Financial Times' list
of Europe's Climate Leaders, which ranks the top 500 companies in
Europe that are delivering on their Climate Change commitments.
Furthermore, we completed the first assessment period of the
sustainability targets in our RCF and successfully met all three
KPIs, resulting in a three basis point reduction in the margin for
the next 12 months.
Dividend
The final dividend for the year ended 31 March 2023 of 8.70p, if
approved by Shareholders at the AGM later today, will be paid on 28
July 2023. This will take the total dividend for the year to 11.75p
(2022: 11.15p).
For further information, please contact:
Helical plc
Gerald Kaye (CEO) Address: 5 Hanover Square, London
W1S 1HQ
Tim Murphy (CFO) Website: www.helical.co.uk
Tel: 020 7629 0113
FTI Consulting
Dido Laurimore Tel: 020 3727 1000
Richard Gotla
Andrew Davis
Schelical@fticonsulting.com
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END
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