Strong start to the year at Harworth
Land development and regeneration business Harworth Group says it continues to make good progress with its pipeline of 30,668 housing plots and 26.1 million sq ft of commercial space.
The Rotherham-headquartered company has issued a trading update ahead of its Annual General Meeting today.
Lynda Shillaw, chief executive, said demand for the firm’s serviced land and industrial units has been robust so far this year.
It continues to progress planning applications across its Strategic Land portfolio, including its 1,000-home mixed-use development at Ironbridge, which secured the first of its two required planning approvals last week.
Harworth Group’s residential pipeline comprises 9,473 consented housing plots across its Major Development sites and the potential for a further 21,195 housing plots across our Strategic Land sites, of which 2,418 are in planning and awaiting determination.
The firm’s industrial & logistics pipeline comprises 7.9 million sq ft of consented space across its Major Development sites, and the potential for an additional 18.2 million sq ft across our Strategic Land sites, of which 4.2 million sq ft is currently in planning awaiting determination.
Shillaw added: “Our Income Generation portfolio mainly comprises industrial Business Space and Natural Resources assets, providing a recurring rental income that covers our administrative expenses, finance costs and tax, in addition to asset management opportunities and the potential for capital value growth.
“So far in 2021, rent collection across our Business Space portfolio remains high at 98%, reflecting the strength of our diverse occupier base.
“We continue to pursue opportunities to churn this portfolio, selling mature assets where we have completed asset management initiatives and recycling the proceeds into higher yielding opportunities where we can extract growth through active asset management and small-scale development.
“Harworth remains well-capitalised and we continue to manage our cashflows sustainably.
“As at 30 April 2021 we had net debt of £94m (31 December 2020: £71.2m), and a pro-forma LTV of 14.7% (31 December 2020: 11.5%), based on 31 December 2020 valuations.
“This continues to provide significant headroom and flexibility.”
