Minerva cancels sale after Allders demise

PROPERTY developer Minerva, 60% owner of bankrupt retailer Allders, has thrown in the towel over attempts to sell itself after six months without a buyer willing to pay anything close to the £530m asking price.

Minerva chief executive Andrew Rosenfeld refused to rule out a partial break-up of the developer, a strategy revealed as a likely option by the Evening Standard last month.

Rosenfeld also maintained Minerva has been advised that it is not liable for any shortfall in Allders' pension fund, last valued as having a £14.5m deficit. Department stores group Allders was put into administration yesterday, leaving doubts over the pension income for thousands of its current and retired employees.

Minerva's board says that any action which may be taken by the new pension regulator to recover the shortfall from Minerva and its directors is unlikely to succeed.

Confirming that Minerva has written off its £17.4m investment in Allders, Rosenfeld tried to paint an upbeat assessment of its future as a London property developer.

He insisted Minerva would press ahead with plans to develop the Minerva Tower, a 50-storey, 712 square foot office block expected to house 10,000 people and due for completion in 2007.

He said: 'This is about driving the business forward in a way that maximises the position for all shareholders through a process of vibrant activity, buying and selling assets and developing the schemes we have, either in joint venture or in isolation.'

Minerva will also go ahead with plans to develop one million square feet of covered shopping in Croydon on the site which includes Allders' flagship store on land now wholly-owned by Minerva.

Minerva shares today fell 4¼p to 259p, giving it a market value of £414m.

Fashion group Alexon is owed £1.5m by Allders, but said the full consequences of the collapse of the company are not yet clear. Administrator Kroll is attempting to find a buyer for the Allders group and has already received a number of approaches.

Most observers expect the stores to be split up and sold to rivals such as Debenhams and House of Fraser. The fast-expanding discount chain, Primark, is also interested. Alexon, whose womenswear brands include Eastex, Dash, Ann Harvey and Kalico, has 118 concessions in Allders stores. Its shares fell 10p to 305½p.