A high-tech manufacturing park in Middlesbrough is set to be sold to the top bidder after a flurry of interest from potential buyers.

Council leaders have been asked to approve the sale of TeesAMP to an unnamed buyer who has offered a “significantly” higher price than a £14.5m valuation of the site.

In a report to the Executive, both the recommended buyer and the offer were not published, for commercial reasons.

A council report to the Executive said interest has been strong, with multiple offers received during the competitive process for the sale of the site. A “best and final” offer stage was undertaken and the recommended bid “significantly” exceeded the expected receipt.

Commercial real estate firm Cushman and Wakefield assessed the detail of the offers, concluding that the highest should be the recommended bid. A council report to Executive said: “This has been reviewed by officers with the same conclusion reached.”

TeesAMP was launched in 2020 with financial assistance via a repayable grant from Tees Valley Combined Authority (TVCA) and private investment.

The 11-hectare site on the edge of Riverside Industrial Park provides high-spec units for advanced manufacturing businesses and all units at TeesAMP 1 are currently let, bringing in over £1m a year in rental income for the council.

The sale will also include undeveloped land of approximately five acres at TeesAMP 2, which could provide a further 87,500 sq ft of accommodation. This removes the cash-strapped council’s requirement to finance the development of the remediated land.

The report said the proposed sale of TeesAMP will also reduce the need to use £4.6m of the £13.6m approved by Government in Exceptional Financial Support (EFS), which must be repaid by the council with interest.

The report said: “Within this total, an amount of £4.6m was included to cover the risk of a delay in the timing of the realisation of capital receipts compared to the planned £13.7m of investment in the transformation programme and redundancy costs.

The sale of TeesAMP will mitigate against the need to draw upon this element of EFS.”

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The sale of TeesAMP was among the assets and buildings included in a raft of sales to raise capital receipts, which the local authority said was “critical” to the delivery of its medium term financial plan and transformation programme.

The asset review proved hugely controversial with some Conservative councillors describing it as “a fire sale”.

Tees Valley Mayor, Ben Houchen, along with MP for Middlesbrough and East Cleveland, Simon Clarke, and four Conservative councillors, said the plans to sell off council-owned buildings warranted serious debate”, while questioning the estimated £33m expected to be raised.

The recommendations for the sale of TeesAMP wll be considered by the Executive on Wednesday, May 22, while formal consent must also be sought from the TVCA.