A businessman whose engineering firm works in the oil and gas industries in Eastern Europe and Central Asia has bought an island off the coast of Plymouth.
Morgan Phillips, whose Guardian Industrial 海角视频 (GI海角视频) company procures and ships engineering gear to nations such as Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Georgia and Kazakhstan, has snapped up the famous Drake’s Island for an undisclosed fee.
The landmark, which has planning permission for a luxury spa and hotel, was put on sale by Rotolok, another Devon engineering firm, in October 2018 with a guide price of £6million.
Rotolok boss Dan McCauley, a former Plymouth Argyle chairman, bought the island for just £384,000 in 1995.
Mr Phillips, whose Plymouth-based company is also involved in numerous building projects in the South West, said his vision for the island is to “restore it for the people of Plymouth and visitors to the city.”
A former Royal Naval Weapons engineer, Mr Phillips said he wants to preserve the original features and structures on the island and enhance them in line with the planning consent. He also plans to create a “living museum” and heritage centre.
The six-acre island, named after Sir Francis Drake who set sail from it in 1577 to circumnavigate the globe, has played an important role in defending Plymouth against French and Spanish forces in the 16th century and from Royalist attack during the English Civil War.
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“As an historic site which has been largely untouched for the past 30 years, we will inevitably uncover various issues which will affect the timescale to complete the project, but we aim to get the project started as quickly as possible,” Mr Phillips said,
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The businessman has considerable international experience having worked on large, complex developments from the London Underground through to projects in Baku, Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
GI海角视频 is also working on the refurbishment of the Eggbuckland Keep, part of the Palmerston defences for the north of Plymouth.
He said: “I’m under no illusions that the people of Plymouth regard Drake’s Island as the jewel in the city’s crown and they want to enjoy it as soon as they possibly can - indeed, we want the island to be open to the public as often as possible.
“However, before that can happen, careful, environmentally sensitive work needs to take place to make it safe and accessible. We will be working with disabled charities to develop the best way to get people of as many different abilities as possible access to the island.”
The restoration will be led by GI海角视频’s in-house team of experts, many of whom are former Royal Navy, Royal Marines and Army Royal Engineers.
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GI海角视频 will receive support from specialists including architects J H Consulting, which will work closely with Historic England to ensure historic parts of the island are preserved. Plymouth-based Ercle Architectural Services will work on interior designs, along with Bryant Commercials on surveying work. Barclays bank, Fuel Communications and Woollcombe Yonge solicitors, who advised on the acquisition, will provide ongoing support to GI海角视频.
“We look forward to working with all stakeholders, sharing our plans with full transparency and delivering on the proposals that the previous owner, Dan McCauley and his team worked up,” Mr Phillips said. “I expect to start discussions with Plymouth City Council’s planning team soon and anticipate providing further details on the programme of works in the coming weeks and months.”