International law firm Trowers & Hamlins has recently advised longstanding client Ellison Institute of Technology, Oxford Limited (“EIT”) on the acquisition of its new expanded site at Oxford Science Park, a bold step in EIT’s mission to bring world-leading science, technology and entrepreneurship together under one roof. The site, which is an established life sciences hub for international science and technology companies, was purchased from The Oxford Science Park (a joint venture comprising Magdalen College, Oxford and Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC) for £890m.
The deal marks a major milestone in EIT’s plans to grow its Oxford presence to over 2 million sq ft of laboratories, offices, and collaborative spaces for research and education, creating a dynamic home for scientific innovation in the pursuit of solving humanity's most challenging problems. The new site will also help to augment EIT's world-leading work in four key areas:
- health, medical science and generative biology;
- food security and sustainable agriculture;
- climate change and managing atmospheric CO2; and
- AI and robotics
Lisa Flashner, Chief Operating Officer at Ellison Institute of Technology, Oxford Limited said:
"By breaking down the silos between science, research, industry and policy, the Institute is reimagining the path from scientific discovery to applied solutions which will have impact on a global scale. To achieve this, you need a great team to support you. The Trowers team have supported us from the beginning of our journey and as such EIT has a deep, ongoing and trusted working relationship with their multi-faceted team of lawyers, resulting in the kind of intelligent and commercial decision making that only comes from fully understanding our brand and our unique vision."
Tom Calnan, lead Partner for Trowers & Hamlins on the acquisition commented:
"Projects of this scale and impact don't come around very often and we are immensely proud to have been able to work closely once again with the EIT team, who continue to lead the way in life sciences and global innovation. The new campus marks the next phase of EIT's journey towards delivering a world-class life sciences facility which will be one of the most exciting developments in Oxford’s modern history, and potentially the most significant project ever carried out within the UK Life Sciences sector as a whole. In advising EIT on every aspect of the deal the Trowers team was able to demonstrate the firm’s considerable depth and expertise, both within the sector, and in terms of large-scale deal execution more generally. This was a transaction that demanded precision, creativity, and strategic thinking, and we look forward to continuing to support and collaborate with EIT in delivering its vision to Oxford.”
The transaction required combined multidisciplinary expertise from Trowers' Real Estate, Corporate, Tax, Construction, Finance, Planning, Environmental, and Energy teams.
The deal team was led by Tom Calnan, with support from teams led by Paul Andrews (Real Estate), Nick Harrisingh and Alison Chivers (Corporate), Assad Maqbool (Construction) and Michael Surry (Tax).
