Member Article

Mills & Reeve in Leeds advises on sale of rail freight sites

The real estate team at the Leeds office of national law firm Mills & Reeve has assisted the in-house legal team at DB Schenker Rail (UK) Limited, which has its UK headquarters in Doncaster, with the sale of a number of rail freight sites to Network Rail Infrastructure Limited.

Simon Sherwood, partner in the Leeds office led the team that supported the in house legal team at DB Schenker Rail (UK) Limited.

Commenting on the deal, Simon said: “We are delighted to have supported national rail freight operator, DB Schenker Rail (UK) Limited, on such a substantial and nationally significant transaction which will lead the way for further development of the UK freight industry.

“Our long-standing and close working relationship with the DB Schenker Rail (UK) Limited legal and property teams proved invaluable in delivering this complex property transaction affecting a large part of the UK’s transport infrastructure.”

Chris Thornes, Head of Commercial Law at DB Schenker Rail (UK) Limited, said: “The team at Mills & Reeve provided an extremely professional and high quality service which helped us to deliver this complex and demanding transaction.”

The majority of DB Schenker Rail (UK) Limited operational freight sites will remain in DB Schenker Rail (UK) Limited ownership and the company will continue to invest strategically in property where DB Schenker Rail (UK) Limited can make the most of emerging market opportunities.

Network Rail has stated that the acquisition of the leasehold sites will help it make better use of the network, providing improved access to freight operators and adding capacity at critical points on the East Coast and West Coast main lines.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Robert Beaumont .