27th May 2009 - Major UK steel company chooses Lanarkshire for expansion

Almondale Investments has secured a major industrial letting that will bring the UK's largest independent sheet and plate stockholding company to Lanarkshire.

Yorkshire-based Eterniti Steels has agreed a three-year lease at Almondale's Europark Industrial Estate at Mossend near Bellshill. The properties extend to 30,000 sq ft of high bay factory accommodation with an acre of storage land. The quoting rent for the properties was £2.50 per sq ft.

Europark is located literally across the road from the former CORUS service centre and plate profiling mill, which closed earlier year with the loss of 78 jobs.

The Scottish operation of Eterniti Steels is currently based at Loanhead, near Edinburgh, but this will now be concentrated in Mossend.

Colliers CRE and D M Hall acted for Almondale Investments, Iain Davidson of Colliers said: "We are delighted to have secured such a well established tenant as Eterniti Steels at Europark who were attracted to the estate by its strategic location within the heart of Lanarkshire and by the flexible approach adopted by our clients.  

"While market conditions remain challenging we are encouraged by the fact that the deal was concluded within weeks of our instructions to market the property. Indeed our marketing brochure was still at the printers!"

The deal has won praise from the local business community.  

Douglas Millar, chief executive of Lanarkshire Chamber of Commerce, said: "In the current economic climate it is really good news to hear of Eterniti Steels' plans to establish a base at the Europark Industrial Estate, a facility that will bring much needed jobs to North Lanarkshire.

"This investment clearly demonstrates that even during the current recession, Lanarkshire has what companies are really looking for - first class premises and infrastructure, as well as access to a suitably trained and available workforce."

Almondale Investments and it sister company, Cosmopolitan Investments, has enjoyed a long and successful relationship with Lanarkshire. Cosmopolitan's flagship project in the county, Innovation Park at Bellshill, is a 70,000 sq ft office development whose tenants include the Guardian Newspaper Group, Balfour Beatty and Lloyds banking group.