Investors push for Trafford Centre sale

A Canadian investor is reportedly pushing for the sale of Intu’s Trafford Centre following Intu’s collapse, the Sunday Times has reported.

The reports come only days after Intu collapsed into administration on Friday 26 June. 

Following the administration, control of Intu’s 17 shopping centres will be passed to their respective lenders, with operating companies “remaining unaffected”. 

Following discussions with Intu, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) reportedly made the decision to take control of the Trafford Centre, rather than agree to a 15-month debt standstill, a move that helped push Intu into administration last week.  

The CPPIB is now “confident” that a quick sale can help it recover the £250m it lent against the shopping centre, which is currently valued at £1.7bn. An additional £690m worth of mortgage-backed securities is also secured against the site.

According to the Sunday Times, property tycoon John Whittaker is among the potential bidders in the quick sale of the site. Whittaker previously sold the Trafford Centre to Intu through a £1.65bn deal in 2011. 

The latest sale will reportedly reveal the “extent of value destruction” in Britain’s shopping centres, the Times has said.

Earlier this year, Intu revealed it wrote down the value of its shopping centres by £1.9bn after a number of retailers that occupy space at its centres entered administration or issued CVAs. It also revealed that like-for like rental income decreased by 9.1% compared to the previous year.