Berkeley acquires National Grid stake in realty JV for $538 million

(Reuters) – London-listed housebuilder Berkeley said on Tuesday it had acquired the remaining 50% interest it did not already own in St William Homes from partner National Grid for 412.5 million pounds ($537.7 million).

The full ownership of St William Homes, set up in 2014 to develop industrial sites into residential developments in London and the South East UK, would bolster Berkeley’s earnings for the next three years, the company said.

The all-cash deal will give Berkeley full control of 19 sites already under its land holdings and their roster of 12,600 homes.

National Grid in a separate statement said the companies had also entered into agreements worth about 270 million pounds for acquiring several other sites owned by the electricity and gas utility.

Following the full acquisition of St William Homes, Berkeley expects to hit its pre-tax profit targets for the financial years ending April 2024 and 2025 a year earlier in both cases.

($1 = 0.7672 pounds)

(Reporting by Shanima A in Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi)