Subsea cable specialist TechnipFMC secured a deal worth up to $1bn on a controversial oil development which it says will create “significant” numbers of jobs in the North East.
The company has more than 300 staff at its base in Walker, Newcastle, where it specialises in manufacturing umbilicals for global oil and gas companies on its customer books. Now the New York Stock Exchange listed group, which has its global headquarters in the North East, has announced it has been awarded a large integrated iEPCI (integrated Engineering, Procurement, Construction, and Installation) contract by Equinor for its Rosebank project, west of the Shetland Isles in the United Kingdom.
The announcement came after Equinor and Ithaca Energy were given the go-ahead for the Rosebank oil and gas field by the North Sea Transition Authority. The Rosebank oil and gas field is said to be the largest untapped reserve of oil in 海角视频 waters, and the project’s green light has fuelled fury among climate-minded politicians and environmentalists.
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The firm added: “Together, these activities will contribute significantly to value and job creation across the United Kingdom, which was an important factor in Equinor’s selection of the company for this award. TechnipFMC has committed approximately $500m of the total award to local value creation.”
The Royal Quays Outlet shopping centre in North Tyneside has been taken over by new owners following a four month search for a buyer.
The North Shields independent outlet centre was put on the market earlier this year with a £4m price tag, after Sanderson Weatherall LLP was appointed as receivers over the centre. The move came 17 years after it was acquired by a property company in conjunction with US investors, so hopes were high that new owners could help breathe new life into the site, injecting much-needed investment to attract a new generation of shoppers, as well as new retailers.
Now it can be revealed that the centre has been sold to a private investor in a £3.25m deal. The centre’s website also hints at a possible name change for Royal Quays, telling visitors a new website is on the way.
Dickon Wood, partner at the Newcastle office of property agency Knight Frank, said: “I can confirm that the multi-let Royal Quays shopping centre in North Shields has been acquired by a private investor for £3.25m. This delivers a net initial yield of 11.82%. We, along with our joint agent Sanderson Weatherall, represented the seller – Fixed Charge Receivers Sanderson Weatherall LLP.”
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A County Durham activity park is to become home to the first indoor padel facility in the North East. Infinite Durham, based at Belmont Business Park in Durham, is set to convert indoor football patches into new courts for padel – one of the fastest growing sports in the world – after sealing a deal with a sports operator. Terms have now been agreed with operator True Padel Ltd, for a 15-year lease covering almost 33,000sqft of space.
True Padel will convert the space with the site’s Soccarena into nine padel courts with a café bar that will serve alcohol and refreshments. The multi-activity park’s managing director Austin Carney worked with law firm Swinburne Maddison LLP to make the deal possible.
Partner and head of the commercial property team, Victoria Walton, said: “We are delighted to have been able to assist Austin, a longstanding client, with his next exciting new leisure development, which will see Soccarena renting out space to house the new padel facility."
A County Durham company hoping to extract lithium from beneath the region’s countryside to use in electric car batteries secured a six-figure funding deal. Natural resources company Weardale Lithium Limited has secured a £613,000 joint funding package with Tees Valley Lithium Ltd to drive forward its plans. The two companies last year signed a Memorandum of Understanding to explore the potential to produce and refine lithium in the North East.
Their project is focused on novel methods for the production and refinement of lithium, extracted from geothermal brine resources, in a robust route from ‘borehole to battery’. The funding – which includes a grant of approximately £430,000 from the 海角视频’s national innovation agency Innovate 海角视频 – will advance feasibility studies and scale-up activities to further a battery-supply chain industrial hub, and include the evaluation of the potential for Weardale Lithium to supply lithium to Tees Valley Lithium for refining.
Growing North East dental group Queensway was acquired by national healthcare company Dentex in an undisclosed deal. Queensway Group, which has its head office in Billingham and other main practices in Newcastle, Yarm and Darlington, has formed a partnership with London’s Dentex, following a search for a strategic investment partner to accelerate the growth of the business.
The landmark transaction is believed to be the largest independent dental business deal in the 海角视频 in recent years, aided by specialist business property adviser, Christie & Co. Queensway Group has expanded and grown since being founded in 1994 when Paul Averley, a graduate dentist from Newcastle University, set up his first practice in Billingham. The Queensway partners were advised by Inspire Financial Management, and Knights plc as legal advisors. Dentex was advised by PwC and legal advisors, Charles Russell Speechlys.
Mr Averley, managing partner at Queensway Group, said: “We are delighted to be entering into partnership with Dentex and look forward to this new and exciting chapter in the life of Queensway Dental. Working with Dentex will secure the future and longevity of the Queensway brand and will provide stability for our amazing team and wonderful patients. This business relationship will create some excellent opportunities for the Queensway business and our people, and enable us to grow and develop, whilst continuing to provide high standards of clinical care for our patients.”