Forth Ports boosted by retail property

FORTH Ports revealed a better-than-expected performance at its London ports business and signs of recovery in other areas of the business in a third quarter statement yesterday.

The ports and property group also confirmed it had filled the second floor space in its Ocean Terminal shopping centre in Edinburgh recently vacated by soup company Baxters' Forth View restaurant.

It has signed a deal with Frankie & Benny's, the chain that is part of the Restaurant Group. Retailer H&M will also be taking up 10,600 sq ft in the mall next month, the firm added.

Charles Hammond, chief executive of Forth Ports, said voids (empty units] were running at about 90 per cent. He said: "We are making decent progress in a difficult retail market."

He added that rents at Ocean Terminal were at "quite a substantial discount" - less than half of the rate of comparable retail space in the city centre and at the Gyle.

Hammond said the recent government approval of the 84 million Tax Incremental Finance Scheme - one of the first such schemes in the UK - had attracted interest from local authorities across the UK.

The first phase the investment would focus on the development of the esplanade in front of the shopping mall, providing access to the waterfront for Ocean Terminal users and would attract development partners.

"All the improvements will make people interested in investing in waterfront regeneration down in Leith," he said.

Trading at the group's port at Tilbury on the Thames was particularly strong in the last nine months. Performance at its Scottish ports - Burntisland, Grangemouth, Leith, Methil and Rosyth - was "maintained".

But overall, the firm said liquid bulk volumes were 7 per cent down and container volumes at Grangemouth were 9 per cent down on last year.

Investec analyst John Lawson said Forth continues to trade well, with a strong ports performance which was slightly ahead of expectations.