Smiths in £16 million property sale

SMITHS Group plc today announced the sale of an eight acre former operational site in Basingstoke, Hampshire for £16 million.  Prior to the sale Smiths secured planning consent for more than 95,000 ft.² of retail warehouse development on this site.

The site has a current book value of £4.3 million and was occupied by part of the Smiths Aerospace division until October 2002, when it relocated to Cheltenham.  Smiths Aerospace was sold to General Electric Company in May 2007.

Smiths Group Chief Executive Philip Bowman said: "This property sale is part of our drive to maximise returns on capital for shareholders through the disposal of surplus assets within the Group".

ENDS