Oil price stability and return to work fuel Aberdeen office rebound

Office take-up in Aberdeen almost doubled between the second and third quarters of 2021 as a recovering oil price helped buoy activity.

Take-up for the third quarter was boosted by Kuehne + Nagel taking around 3,500 sq ft at Aberdeen International Business Park in Dyce.

Unveiling new figures, property consultancy Knight Frank also noted that occupiers were beginning to return to the workplace following lockdown.

The firm found that office take up between July and September reached 51,316 square feet, up by some 97 per cent on the take up levels recorded during the second quarter of 2021. It is also markedly ahead of the first quarter’s 28,000 sq ft.

Take-up for the past quarter was boosted by Mental Health Aberdeen’s move to Langstane House, occupying nearly 12,000 sq ft. Other deals to conclude during the July to September period included law firm Shepherd & Wedderburn’s move to 37 Albyn Place and Kuehne + Nagel taking around 3,500 sq ft at Aberdeen International Business Park in Dyce.

Although the third quarter take-up figure is down on the same period in 2020, when some 80,000 sq ft of office space was transacted, Knight Frank predicted that more “significant” deals could follow in the final three months of 2021 to make for a “positive end to the year”.

Matthew Park, office agency partner at Knight Frank Aberdeen, said: “The oil price is still a big influence on the commercial property market in Aberdeen and the fact that it has stayed above $60 per barrel of oil equivalent for the last six months has also helped.

“There is a cautious and tentative optimism returning to the market, with several deals likely to conclude by the end of 2021.”

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