Blackstone Portfolio Company Expands Footprint at Leading U.K. Biomed Research Campus
A joint venture will result in a 40,000 square foot building with laboratory space.
BioMed Realty, a Blackstone portfolio company and provider of real estate solutions for life science and technology, has a joint venture with the Babraham Research Campus Ltd. that will result in a 40,000 square foot building with fitted laboratory and office space for multi-tenant flexibility.
The Babraham Research Campus Ltd. is the management and commercial development arm of the Babraham Research Campus, a co-location of 60 bioscience companies as well as the Babraham Institute, a life sciences research organization and partner of the University of Cambridge.
“According to market data tracked by BioMed, heightened tenant demand in the UK has driven space availability to essentially zero for functional lab and office space, potentially locking out promising start-ups and scale-ups,” as a press release explains. “The new collaboration with the Babraham Research Campus is in response to significant tenant demand in Cambridge and ensures space for life sciences companies that are typically under-served UK-wide; namely those growing out of the early stages of incubation with an ambition to scale.”
The additional building will expand BioMed’s presence at the campus to more than 130,000 square feet across three buildings.
The company claims the new building will be the most sustainable one on the Campus by using technology to reduce energy use and improve water usage, enabling “significant carbon emissions reductions.”
“The development will have a BREEAM ‘Excellent’ score and a notable net gain in biodiversity. Construction on site will begin imminently with completion in Q4 2023.”
BioMed Realty owns and operates 15.5 million square feet in such innovation markets in the U.S. and U.K. as Boston/Cambridge, San Francisco, San Diego, Seattle, Boulder, and Cambridge, U.K. The company also has 4.2 million square feet of Class-A properties in active construction.
The company says it entered the U.K. marketing in 2012 and to date owns approximately 1 million square feet of lab and office space across Cambridge. Two major facilities in the city house 30 life sciences companies, ranging from start-ups to established firms.
“The Company’s sizable portfolio, concentrated in leading innovation markets in the UK and United States, allows tenants to grow their business and transition quickly and easily between properties as their company expands, even into new markets,” the release said.