Dome saga limps on

More than ten months after bids were invited for the vacant Millennium Dome, would-be buyers say they still have no idea when the Government will tell them who has been successful.

As maintenance of Greenwich's white elephant continues to eat up an estimated ? 240,000 a month, government-appointed experts are still assessing bids from potential buyers for "market viability".

As they await a decision from Lord Falconer, minister in charge of the Dome, bidders remain tight-lipped about their plans, though rumours include theme parks or a sporting venue. Each proposal must include details of how the 320m-diameter Dome, which Tony Blair has decreed must not be pulled down, will be used.

Since 1 July the site has been managed by regeneration agency and government quango English Partnerships, which took over from the New Millennium Experience Company. It owns 300 acres of the Greenwich peninsula, and the site includes six other buildings. How much land is sold with the Dome will depend on how much the successful bidder wants.

What is sure is the value of the land. Once an inaccessible, polluted quagmire, millions of pounds and several decontamination projects have left it clear and well-connected by Tube.

Robert Upton, director of Greenwich estate agent James Johnston, said: "All the land there could theoretically be developed, so in terms of it being a residential location it is a prime part of real estate, possibly fetching up to £2.5 million an acre. The main reason is it is so close to Canary Wharf, where there are going to be many new jobs, and it is one stop away on the Tube."

More than 150 potential bidders have been narrowed down to a shortlist, said to be of no more than four, of whom one favourite is Meridian Delta Ltd. Set up a year ago to bid for the Dome site, it is a consortium of four rich, experienced property companies - Grosvenor, Quintain Estates and Development plc, Lend Lease Corporation and Stanhope plc - helped by impresario Harvey Goldsmith.

Grosvenor, owned by Britain's richest landlord the Duke of Westminster, has more than £4.6 billion in property assets, while Quintain has a £650 million property portfolio, including 14 acres on the west side of the Greenwich peninsula. Lend Lease's previous jobs include the Bluewater shopping centre and Sydney Olympic Village, and Stanhope developed Broadgate on the edge of the City.

Rumours about the consortium's plans for the site range from a theme park or sporting venue to a mixed-use development of flats and offices around the Dome shell.

Mr Goldsmith said: "Our plan is workable, it's viable, it satisfies all the conditions that the experts want, and it will give our country something it can be proud of. We want the Government to get this right, and to do that the whole site must work together. We cannot have another disaster like Wembley or Pickett's Lock."

A Meridian Delta spokesman insisted the Dome was "at the heart" of its plans, adding only: "We remain interested in the possibility of the Dome and the associated land. We have had discussions with a number of parties about the future of the site." He said he had "no idea" when Lord Falconer would announce the successful bid.

Another contender is scientific research charity the Wellcome Trust, which has been in talks with English Partnerships over the possibility of turning the Dome into a biomedical research centre, including laboratories and a space for displays. Another suggestion is that it hoped to develop a sporting venue.

A spokesman for the trust would not comment on the plans, but it too has no idea when Lord Falconer will announce his decision.

Meanwhile BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of the BBC, has expressed an interest in being "content supplier" for whichever bidder wins.

A spokeswoman dismissed rumours that the BBC might help turn the Dome into a theme park, possibly based on BBC shows such as Walking With Dinosaurs. "We are interested in talking to anyone about the contents, in terms of being a supplier, but it is still in the very early stages and we are not allied to one particular consortium," she said.

English Partnerships is also handling bids to use the Dome for events, including Ministry of Sound's plan to hold a New Year's Eve party for 40,000 people.