LONDON – Mitsui Fudosan held a groundbreaking ceremony on Monday for a redevelopment project at the British Library in central London. The total project cost will reach about £1.1 billion (¥231 billion), marking the largest investment in Europe for the major Japanese real estate developer. The library, which has one of the largest collections of books in the world, is located in an area with good transportation access, and the British government aims to create a new base there for drugmakers and other medical-related firms.
In the project, a new complex with 11 stories above ground and one below will be constructed within the premises of the British Library. The new building, slated to be completed in 2032, will include areas for library events and rental laboratories. Major drugmakers and artificial intelligence-related companies have their bases in the area, which is close to King’s Cross Station — one of the busiest train stations in the U.K., as well as a station for Eurostar international high-speed trains linking the country with continental Europe.
It also has easy access to the cities of Cambridge and Oxford, where prestigious universities are located. At the ceremony, Mitsui Fudosan Executive Managing Officer Yugo Ono said that the company aims to create a facility that can not only help develop business in surrounding areas but also bring value to various users.
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