Meadowhall: Sheffield shopping centre reportedly set to go on sale with £750m asking price

Meadowhallshopping centre is reportedly set to go on the market for £750 million, a decade after it was valued at nearly double that amount.

British Land is preparing to sell the Sheffield mega mall, which it owns 50/50 with Norges, the Norwegian investment fund, according to a report in The Times.

The Times states that CBRE has been asked to handle the sale, which is set to begin in the 'coming weeks'.

Meadowhall was built on the site of the former Hadfields' East Hecla steelworks and opened in 1990, at which time it was the UK’s second biggest shopping complex.

It was developed by the South Yorkshire duo Eddie Healey and Paul Sykes, who sold the complex to British Land in 1999, reportedly pocketing £700m in profit.

The Star reported in 2012 how Norges had paid £348m for its stake in a deal which, including debt, valued Meadowhall at £1.525bn. If the new asking price is accurate, that suggests the shopping centre's value has roughly halved in the 11 years since.

The Times reports how any buyer would inherit £450 million of debt secured against the centre, the cost of servicing which means the owners have received no income from Meadowhall for three years, though the income is now understood to be close to exceeding the cost of the debts.

In August, The Star reported how a flagship Sports Direct and a Frasers department store were set to move into the old Debenhams at Meadowhall.

Both Meadowhall and British Land declined to comment.