Manchester United’s plans to build a 100,000-seat stadium next to Old Trafford are facing delays due to a standoff over the price of land needed to begin work on the construction of the proposed ground, which minority shareholder and chief of sporting operations Jim Ratcliffe has called “the Wembley of the North.”
The club want land used as a rail freight terminal to complete the Old Trafford Regeneration Project — a multibillion-pound project to transform United’s historic stadium and its surrounding district, which they say would bring ￡7.3 billion (US$9.7 billion) a year to the UK economy.
United have held talks with Freightliner, the haulage company that owns and operates the terminal, about buying the land, but negotiations are deadlocked due to a disagreement over the price.
Photo: Reuters
While Freightliner is understood to have expressed a willingness to relocate from Trafford Park to nearby Saint Helens, the company is seeking about ￡400 million for the land, with United valuing it at between ￡40 million and ￡50 million.
Ratcliffe has made it clear United are unwilling to accept the asking price set by Freightliner’s parent company, Brookfield, and initial discussions are believed to have reached an impasse.
A source said Freightliner “have United over a barrel.” The company is willing to relocate to a proposed new site that would offer increased capacity for trains, but it is in no rush to move.
The club’s view is that Freightliner would only receive what would be a significant windfall if they are willing to reduce the asking price.
When unveiling designs for the Old Trafford master plan, produced by Foster and Partners, in March, Ratcliffe set an ambitious target of completing what he described as a five-year build by 2030.
United had been hoping to begin preparatory building work by the end of this year, but failing to secure the Freightliner site would delay the start date.
United’s options at this stage would be to increase their offer, wait for Freightliner to lower its demands, or scale back the project so that the freight terminal land is not required.
It is also possible that the new Old Trafford Mayoral Development Corp, chaired by former World Athletics president Sebastian Coe, could issue a compulsory purchase order, although that would be subject to legal challenges and would lead to further delays.
Completion by 2030 was always seen as an ambitious target outside the senior leadership team at Old Trafford, given United have yet to obtain planning permission, secure ownership of all the land required or formally appoint architects.
While Foster and Partners produced the artist impressions and videos of the proposed new stadium, the club plan to run a formal tender process to appoint architects.
United estimate the cost of the project at ￡4.2 billion, but say it would bring huge social and economic benefits to the local community and wider region, including 92,000 jobs, more than 17,000 new homes and attracting an extra 1.8 million visitors annually.
The cost for the stadium has been projected to be about ￡2 billion, although given the tented roof alone is likely to cost ￡300 million, industry sources say ￡3 billion is a more realistic budget. Freightliner’s demands for ￡400 million could result in the redevelopment being significantly over budget from the start.
United are not seeking any public money to build the stadium itself. The club declined to comment on a private commercial negotiation.
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