Scottish Enterprise and leading property consultancies CBRE and DTZ has confirmed that Nine, Edinburgh BioQuarter, the first building at Scotland’s life sciences flagship development, is nearing full occupation with just 15,000 sq ft of space remaining.
Start up medical company, Edinburgh Molecular Imaging (EMI), a ‘spin out’ organisation from the University of Edinburgh, is the most recent tenant to move into BioQuarter, taking 2,300 sq ft in the building on a five year agreement.
The completion of major lettings earlier in the year to The Farr Institute (10,300 sq ft) and ADRC (4,500 sq ft) also increased occupation levels substantially. Once current live deals conclude, the development will be 76% let.
Allan Matthews, director at CBRE, one of the letting agents for BioQuarter, said: “It’s fantastic to see accommodation within this prime development being snapped up by such a high calibre of tenants. BioQuarter has rapidly developed into one of Europe’s leading centres for life science research and there is strong interest in the remaining 15,000 sq ft of space.
“There are currently major lettings in the pipeline for the first and second floor, which will take the development to 76% let, and we have a new café operator soon to be announced. Proposals will also shortly be presented to the Scottish Enterprise board to scope out future phases, including a new multi-occupation building, a hotel and supporting facilities such as a nursery and retail units.”
Julia Brown, director of life and chemical sciences, Scottish Enterprise, said: “Our ambition for Edinburgh BioQuarter to become one of the world’s leading hubs for life sciences innovation is fast becoming a reality. In just 24 months since it officially opened, the Nine incubator is already home to 22 businesses and 76% of the space has been taken over by innovative life sciences companies and organisations, with EMI, being the 5th successful BioQuarter spin out from Edinburgh University taking up residence.
“Scotland’s life sciences industry already contributes more than £3 billion a year to the Scottish economy with over 650 organisations employing in excess of 32,000 people and we need to look at how we continue to build on its success. Edinburgh BioQuarter is one of the industry’s flagship projects and ensures we have the right infrastructure in place to support ambitious Scottish life sciences companies at all stages of development as well as to attract major international corporations to Scotland.”
