Air cargo handling group agrees a new 10-year commitment on its current 10,000 sqm airside warehouse unit on Heathrow Airport’s Shoreham Road ‘Horseshoe’.
Swissport, one of the world’s top two air cargo handling companies, is to extend its stay at Segro’s Heathrow Cargo Centre at Heathrow Airport for a further 10 years following the re-gear of its lease.
Segro said the company, which handles approximately 4.8 million tonnes of cargo annually, has signed a 10-year lease “at a market rent” on a 104,000 sq ft (10,000 sqm) warehouse unit on Shoreham Road, the airport’s notorious ‘Horseshoe’ cargo area.
Jason Gaskell, Swissport’s COO of cargo for western Europe, commented: “Heathrow remains key to our UKI cargo operations. Our commitment to Segro’s Heathrow Cargo Centre will allow Swissport to strengthen its air cargo operations and service capabilities at Heathrow airport, allowing our customers a stable platform for further growth.”
The Cargo Centre, which comprises 1.2 million sq ft (110,000 sqm) of space in total, has an airside location that offers direct access to the apron. The agreement of the new terms with Swissport follows long-term commitments from Air Canada and Worldwide Flight Services which have both re-geared leases in 2019, Segro said.
It pointed out that the lease includes “a clause which gives Segro the ability to progress a future redevelopment of the Cargo Centre to support the proposed expansion of the airport and benefit customers including Swissport”.
Gareth Baker, regional director for Heathrow at Segro, said: “This long-term commitment ensures Swissport and its customers can continue to benefit from our well-positioned, airside cargo facilities at Heathrow Airport, which are integral to the efficient and reliable movement of goods.
“Swissport’s decision also reflects the importance of Heathrow Airport for UK exports and imports and the strong demand for the properties in our portfolio. We’re pleased to extend our relationship so we can continue working together to capitalise on future growth opportunities for air cargo in the UK.”
Segro is the leading owner and manager of airside cargo facilities in the UK, with a portfolio of 2.2 million sq ft across Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted airports. Swissport is one of Segro’s largest airside customers, occupying 185,000 sq ft in total across the three sites.
Heathrow Airport is the UK’s largest cargo hub, with over 1.6 million metric tonnes transported through the airport in the year June 2018 to May 2019.
Source: Lloyd´s
