Scots Church 140-154 Collins st Melbourne. Picture: David Geraghty Source: The Australian
BHP Billiton’s plans for a new global headquarters building in Melbourne will trigger construction of a tower planned for Collins Street.
Rival consortia — one involving BHP’s current landlord, developer Grocon — are vying for the miner’s 12,000sqm office lease requirement, enabling one of them to proceed with a premium tower planned for the exclusive Paris end of Collins Street.
BHP declined to comment yesterday, but is believed to have shortlisted towers planned by Melbourne-based fund manager APN Property Group bidding with Grocon against a rival consortium of Sydney fund manager Charter Hall and Cbus Property.
The APN-Grocon proposal is to build a $150 million mixed-use tower at 150 Collins Street behind the historic Scots Church on the northwest corner of Collins and Russell streets.
The planned Charter Hall-Cbus tower is across the road at 171 Collins Street on the site of the heritage-listed Mayfair Building.
Either tower will be the 27th built or committed in Melbourne over the past five years.
BHP, currently a tenant in Grocon’s QV complex, has three years left on its 10-year lease.
But with the slimmed-down miner occupying only about 10,000sqm of the 18,000sqm it leases in the 180 Lonsdale Street tower, it is keen to leave the building, which it shares with Telstra.
