Hammersmith and Fulham leader urges king of Saudi Arabia to avoid Capco bid

Hammersmith & Fulham council’s leader on Tuesday told the Evening Standard he will write to the king of Saudi Arabia urging him not to get involved in a swoop for Earls Court’s landlord Capco.

Steve Cowan’s decision to contact King Salman comes a day after a consortium led by property tycoon Nick Candy, and believed to include Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, said it is mooting a takeover offer for £2.1 billion developer Capco.

Capco owns swathes of Covent Garden and a redevelopment site in Earl’s Court, where 7500 homes are planned.

The Earl’s Court estate has attracted criticism from Labour-run council Hammersmith & Fulham, which has disputed with the property firm over housing strategy.

The local authority wants to use a compulsory purchase order to buy some of the land. It also wants Capco to return two former council estates, Gibbs Green and West Kensington, that the Conservative administration in 2012 agreed could be sold to the company.

Cowan said the letter would “point out that the CPO of Earl’s Court will go ahead regardless of who owns it”.

He added: “We will say that he [King Salman] really doesn’t want the moral entanglement of getting involved in such a dubious development.”

Public Investment Fund could not be reached for comment. Capco and Candy declined to comment.

Capco is also in talks to sell Earl’s Court to developer Delancey.