RNS Number:1973A
Derwent London PLC
13 July 2007


13 July 2007



         Derwent London plc ("Derwent") announces #175 million of sales



Derwent is pleased to announce the disposal of three non-core assets which were
acquired through the merger with London Merchant Securities plc in February this
year.   The sales total #175.0 million, before disposal costs, and achieved
#91.8 million above the 31 January 2007 book value of #83.2 million.   The
transactions are:



*                Disposal of Greenwich Reach, SE10.  Completion has taken place
to Roamquest Limited, part of Galliard Homes, for #111.8 million.  This eight
acre cleared site is on the South bank of the Thames, overlooking Canary Wharf.
 The site currently has planning consent for 980 residential apartments and
71,155 sq ft of commercial/retail space.



*                Contracts have been exchanged on the disposal of 158-166
Brompton Road, Knightsbridge, SW3 to a private purchaser for #45.0 million.
This property comprises retail, office and residential space, totalling 27,000
sq ft and produces a short term income of #0.8 million per annum.



*                Contracts have been exchanged on the disposal of 3 & 4 South
Place, EC2 to the Frogmore Group for #18.2 million.  Situated close to Broadgate
in the City of London, the properties comprise two adjacent vacant office
buildings totalling approximately 36,000 sq ft.



These sales are the first since Derwent converted to REIT status on 1 July 2007.
Both South Place and Brompton Road are within the tax exempt REIT ringfence
and will therefore not attract tax on their disposal.  However, since the
Greenwich property falls outside the REIT ringfence any capital gains arriving
from its sale will be chargeable to tax.


John Burns, Chief Executive of Derwent London commented:



"We are delighted with the substantial premiums achieved which were accomplished
so soon after our REIT conversion, at a level of 110% above book value. The sale
of Knightsbridge and South Place enable the Group to achieve significant
benefits from the REIT status by disposing of two properties, which were not in
our current development programme, in a tax efficient manner. The Greenwich sale
is a non-core disposal as the Group continues to concentrate its efforts on
commercial development, where it considers its expertise are better applied than
residential schemes of this magnitude.



"Proceeds from the sales will be channelled into our substantial pipeline of
refurbishment and redevelopment schemes as well as future acquisitions.  Further
disposals of non-core and provincial properties will follow.  These sales
endorse the strength of the London property market and Derwent London's
commitment to concentrate on major office and refurbishment schemes within our
chosen Central London villages."



                                     -ENDS-



For further information please contact:


Derwent London                                        Tel: 020 7659 3000
John Burns


Financial Dynamics                                    Tel: 020 7831 3113
Dido Laurimore / Nicole Marino





Derwent London

The merger of Derwent Valley Holdings and London Merchant Securities took place
on 1st February 2007, creating Derwent London plc, a leading central London
office specialist with a combined portfolio valued at #2.4 billion, of which 84%
is located in central London. The combined portfolio offers a wealth of
potential and Derwent London will continue to build on the core strengths of the
combined business, drawing upon the existing strengths of both Derwent Valley
and London Merchant Securities.



Derwent London has an extensive pipeline of development and refurbishment
assets. Continued focus will remain on the central London market where its
established design led philosophy and creative management approach to
development will continue to generate rental and capital growth.  However the
synergy created by the merger will also provide the necessary leverage and scale
to allow the new business to undertake significantly larger development
projects.  In total, 5.2 million sqft of development or refurbishment projects
are in the pipeline, of which 2.2 million sqft is currently on site and 3
million sqft is scheduled for the future.


                      This information is provided by RNS
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END

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