Britain’s largest independent distributor of fuels and lubricants for business and homes is relocating its Midlands operation to Prime Point, the multi-million pound speculative industrial and warehouse development in the Black Country.
Certas Energy is the third major occupier to announce its move to the multi-million pound speculative development, which is being built by national commercial property and investment company LCP at its flagship industrial estate The Pensnett Estate, in Kingswinford.
It has agreed a 20-year lease for Unit D, a 40,000 sq ft unit, from where it will undertake its distribution and operational work to meet growing demand.
Mick Filaitis, of Certas Energy, said it plans to relocate its 11 staff from its existing, smaller Brierley Hill premises to the new site and consolidate its packed distribution hubs that are based in England and Wales.
“Most of our packed lubricant distribution in England and Wales is managed by third party logistics partners, but the move to Prime Point will allow us to take control of our own warehousing operations whilst we continue to work with logistics partners to manage outbound deliveries. This move will allow us to improve efficiencies, offer a far more cost effective service & achieve company growth aspirations,” he said.
“The unit and its location are ideally suited for us because we have a long-standing presence in the area under and it offers good potential for growth.”
Certas Energy, which distributes and delivers lubricants on behalf of four major oil companies, hopes to take possession of the unit by the end of this month (October) and to start relocation from Brierley Hill in November, It plans to be fully operational by January 2019.
Paula James, LCP’s industrial lettings manager, said: “This is more great news for LCP, which has attracted yet another leading name to Prime Point. It is particularly gratifying to see that it has helped the company to safeguard jobs in the area and that it is planning to grow further once it is operational.”
Earlier this year, ERIKS, Europe’s largest industrial services company, announced it has agreed a 15-year lease on a 30,000 sq ft unit at Prime Point, while International Piping Products (Europe) Ltd has agreed a 10-year lease on a 21,740 sq ft unit, where it is manufacturing bespoke fasteners and machined components predominantly for the oil and gas, power generation and aerospace industries.
The Black Country Local Enterprise Partnership (BCLEP) has been supporting LCP with the development. Prime Point sits within DY5, Dudley’s business and innovation enterprise zone, which qualifies occupiers for benefits, including up to £55,000 a year business rate discount over a five-year period.
LCP’s appointed agents, Bulleys and Lambert Smith Hampton (LSH), have been working with the company to attract new businesses to the area and talks are progressing with a number of interested parties on the remaining unit C ,which is 40,000 sq ft
James Bird, Senior Associate at Bulleys, said: “We’re very pleased to have secured Certas Energy for Prime Point. There’s no doubt that the development is fulfilling a demand for exceptional quality units in a location that meets many businesses’ needs.”
Matt Tilt, industrial director, joint marketing agent, added: “LCP’s investment in developing Prime Point is paying off as Certas Energy adds to the roll-call of occupiers. It’s very good news for the area.”
The Pensnett Estate is one of the largest secure business estates in Europe, and home to 160 businesses in over 2.4 million sq ft of commercial property. Three years ago, LCP invested £1.5 million in Progress Point, a speculative development on the estate comprising 21,000 sq ft of high quality warehouse and industrial space.