Harworth Group has sold two parcels of land in Leeds for a total consideration of £106.6m.

The adjacent plots, at Harworth’s Skelton Grange site, total 48-acres and have been purchased by Microsoft for the construction of a “hyperscale” datacentre.

Since acquiring the site, Harworth has invested in the space to optimise it for future datacentres — including the development of a 100MW battery energy storage system.

Plot 1, covering 27 acres, is being sold for £52.9m and had a boom value of £39m in December 2023.

Plot 2, covering 21 acres, is being sold for £53.2m and had a book value of £12.9m in December 2023.

Completion of the disposal will be phased, expected to be finalised in H2 2024 for plot 1 and H2 2026 for plot 2.

Upon completion, Harworth will be reimbursed £500,000 for incurring extra costs when securing additional power capacity for the site.

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The proceeds from this sale will be reinvested into Harworth’s industrial and logistics development programme, with the group intending to directly develop more prime Grade A properties in its portfolio.

Skelton Grange, a former power station, was purchased by Harworth in 2014 for £3m — since then the group has processed it through planning permission, securing several approvals in that time.

Upon completion of the sale, Harworth will have invested £36.8m in the site, where sixteen acres will be retained to promote 250,000 sq ft of employment space.

Lynda Shillaw (pictured above), CEO at Harworth Group, said: “Since re-listing in 2015 Harworth has successfully completed a number of significant transactions that create value for our shareholders but this sale at Skelton Grange is the Group’s largest to date and is yet another exemplary case study that demonstrates the successful regeneration of brownfield land.

“It highlights Harworth’s capabilities in identifying and acquiring complex sites, creating planning-friendly masterplans that maximise site potential, and deploying timely and effective investments into remediation and infrastructure.”