Development of 120 Fenchurch Street

Greycoat and Core have joined forces to develop the property on behalf of Italian insurer Generali.

The new joint venture company was chosen ahead of a stellar field of developers, thought to include Stanhope, Development Securities and Hammerson.

The site at 116-120 Fenchurch Street and 10-14 Fenchurch Avenue was granted consent in September 2008 for around 400,000 sq ft of office-based space in a 15-storey tower.

“It is a very large and complex scheme,” said Greycoat Chairman, Peter Thornton. “The challenges associated with developing a large City scheme such as this suit our combined skill set, with a number of issues to resolve including completing site assembly, resolving rights to light, and refining the existing planning consent.”

Generali controls the site through a mix of freeholds and leaseholds in a vehicle called Saxon Land, which it formed with Australian fund manager Babcock & Brown a decade ago. When Babcock & Brown collapsed in March 2009, Generali bought its stake out and sought a development manager at the end of last year.

Thornton said the scheme would probably not start without a pre-let in place, “Generali is very keen to develop the scheme, but starting it speculatively would be a big call,” he said.