Morrisons completes £220m sale and leaseback deal

ICG Real Estate has today announced its acquisition of seven Morrisons logistics centres.

In a deal reportedly worth £220m, each property will be leased back to the supermarket retailer for a term of up to 25 years.

Morrisons has cut back on its property portfolio this year to save costs, having put five stores on sale in October and announcing the closure of 132 of its McColl’s convenience stores last month.

Despite the sale, Jo Goff, chief financial officer of Morrisons, was optimistic about the business’s future: “The acquisition of McColl’s earlier this year gave us a leading position in the UK convenience market and next year we plan to open a further five supermarkets across the UK, and to invest further in our manufacturing operations.”

Chris Nichols, managing director and portfolio manager at ICG Sale and Leaseback, added: “This transaction is an excellent example of how Sale and Leaseback investing can serve as an alternate form of financing.”

ICG was advised on the transaction by CBRE, Ashurst & Hogan Lovells.

Morrisons was advised by Knight Frank and Eversheds.