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Landmark London development sinks into administration

Landmark London development sinks into administration

A luxury new London hotel and apartment development designed by Norman Foster has fallen into administration.

The 11-storey complex, which is situated on The Strand on the site of the former Marconi Building, is owned by Urvasco, a subsidiary of Spanish hotel chain Grupo Hotelero Uravasco.

Construction of the building at 337-337 The Strand stalled late last year whilst Urvasco sough more funds, but has remained in an incomplete state since then. The site formerly housed Citibank House.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA), Spain’s second biggest bank, has appointed PricewaterhouseCoopers as receivers of the never-named hotel.

PwC said that Urvasco was formed to develop the site of the Grade II listed building that was the location of the first-ever radio broadcast. The hotel was to be managed under the Silken hotel brand.

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Urvasco secured a £83.7 million debt facility from BBVA when it bought the site in 2005 to cover the purchase and conversion.

Barry Gilbertson, partner at PwC, told The Times: “As work on the construction of the site stopped in late 2007, our first task is to take stock of the part-built construction, which may have deteriorated after being exposed to weather through last winter.”

PwC claims it anticipates a number of potential purchasers, after rumours that the developers had gone into administration earlier this year sparked a flood of interest from potential buyers.