Online retail giant Amazon has signed a 10-year lease on a huge warehouse in Merseyside, it has been revealed.
The firm will take over a huge distribution centre in Knowsley, with the move announced by the local council last night - when the prospect of new jobs for the area was raised.
The 217,000sq ft warehouse was built two years ago on Knowsley Business Park using a loan from the authority, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
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Cllr Tony Brennan, cabinet member for regeneration and economic development, revealed the decision during a meeting on Wednesday.
He said: “I can announce tonight that a 10-year lease of the building has been signed, final fit out works are underway for Amazon to occupy the 217,000 square foot facility creating much welcome new jobs and opportunities - jobs that will be available for our residents in Knowsley.”
He added that Amazon was also expected to bring in more than £350,000 per year for the council in business rates.
The distribution centre on Moorgate Road is Amazon’s second facility in Knowsley, with a smaller warehouse on a neighbouring site, and the company is believed to have acquired the former Sonae site in with plans to build a third warehouse.
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The Moorgate Road warehouse was completed in 2019 by private developer Flintrock, which had received a £4m loan from the council to support the project.
Cllr Brennan revealed that the loan had now been repaid in full, along with £1.3m in interest payments and profit share.
He said: “This is a total of £5.3m - money that can be reinvested by the council in delivering services.
“So we have secured a fantastic financial return of 23.5% over the three-year deal with the developer.”
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Cllr Brennan added: “Had the council not stepped in and stepped forward and offered support when support was needed, not only would we not have benefited from circa an additional £1m by way of profit and profit share, the chances are that the site would still be sitting there undeveloped.
“So there would be no annual business rate yield, nor would there be job opportunities for our residents.
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“I think we can all agree, yet another outstanding success story made possible by this council.”
Amazon has been strongly criticised by trade unions for its working conditions, most recently in October 2020 when the Trades Union Congress detailing complaints about pay and conditions.
The TUC report called for more union representation in Amazon warehouses and greater local government oversight over working conditions.
Amazon denied the TUC’s claims, calling them a “false picture” and “sensationalist”.