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New JV to target £100m land acquisition plans in the capital

A new joint-venture set up by investment and development firm Martin’s Properties and developer BlackOnyx is set to snap up £100m of land in areas in and around London.

Obsidian Strategic will look to buy sites within Greater London and prime home counties with a particular concentration on ‘complex sites’ which have the potential to create added value.

It marks a deepening of the partnership between the two firms who are already collaborating on a string of projects in prime London and Surrey.

BlackOnyx’s Managing Director, David Ardley said: “We are looking to acquire complex sites without planning consent that require lateral thinking and a diverse skill set to unlock maximum value.

“We are looking at scaleable sites, including both greenfield and town centre regeneration projects. We expect to see lots of interesting opportunities over the next five years, with the planning system under significant pressure and the political landscape uncertain.”

Ardley set up BlackOnyx eight years ago, in which time the firm has worked on a range of residential projects in prime London and is now plotting even larger development sites in areas such as Chiswick and Guildford.

Martin’s Properties, meanwhile, owns one of the biggest mixed used property portfolios in Chelsea and also has a number of property interests across the capital.

Commenting on the new JV with BlackOnyx, founder Tom Martin, said: “We have set up Obsidian Strategic with a substantial level of funding and a structure that allows us to be extremely agile.

“We are prepared to take planning and development risk on sites and will be looking at a range of acquisitions outside of Prime Central London in the surrounding areas and the Home Counties where we are already active.”

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