The firm is currently unidentified but is described as a ‘leading Chinese cross-border e-commerce enterprise with a well-established international presence’
Dove Valley Park, near Foston, covers 200 acres and is owned by Clowes Developments(Image: Robin Macey)
A “leading” Chinese e-commerce company is behind plans to buy a massive warehouse on an expanding A50 business park near Derby, creating hundreds of jobs.
The currently unidentified firm is the prospective buyer for a planned 37,000 square metre (402,000 square feet) warehouse on Dove Valley Park, near Foston, owned by Clowes Developments, which is run by Derby County owner David Clowes.
South Derbyshire District Council had approved the plans in February, when they were expected to create up to 960 jobs, with the scheme now being changed to meet the specifications of the prospective client.
This client, documents detail, “is a leading Chinese cross-border e-commerce enterprise with a well-established international presence and a long-term strategy to expand its operations within the UK, particularly in South Derbyshire and the wider East Midlands”.
The documents add: “The company intends to invest in the region on a sustained basis, supported by growing demand within its UK distribution network.
“At this stage, the identity of the end user cannot be disclosed, as commercial negotiations remain ongoing and are subject to confidentiality obligations.
“In relation to employment and job creation, the occupier’s operational model is anticipated to generate a significant number of full-time positions across warehouse operations, supervisory roles, and administrative functions.”
They would join MEG – which provides soft drinks for Lidl, Muller, JCB, Kuehne and Nagel and Futuba – on the 200-acre site.
Previously, the business park owners said there was an identified shortage of logistics and business warehouse units across the East Midlands, dubbing the region the “most important logistics location within the UK”.
Retail estate agent Knight Frank said in the summer that “Chinese firms have been actively acquiring space in the UK. Chinese ecommerce platforms are scaling up their operations in the UK market, and expanding their UK-based supply chains and stock holdings in order to offer same or next day delivery options.”
It says: “Leading the charge is JD.com who are aiming to offer an alternative to Amazon. It soft launched its ecommerce platform Joybuy in April this year.”
This included buying warehouse space in Coventry and Milton Keynes, while another Chinese online retail firm, Top Cloud Logistics, bought space in Birmingham, and CIRRO Fulfilment (trading as Super Smart Service), which supports Temu and Shein, “took two warehouses in the Midlands”.
Changes to the scheme approved in February include reducing the overall footprint of the warehouse slightly but expanding its “haunch” height from 17 metres to 18 metres.
A second warehouse on the site will also expand in height from 14 metres to 15 metres at the “haunch” and will have a slightly reduced footprint of 13,000 square metres (140,000 square feet), though this has not been connected to the proposed Chinese occupier of the larger facility.
One warehouse would have 183 parking spaces and the smaller unit would have 119 parking spaces, while the current 401 bus service to the business park would continue to be supported, with improvements being discussed by Clowes and Rotala.
The innovation centre, which will host hundreds of apprenticeships overseen by Burton and South Derbyshire College, remains part of the overall plan approved in February.
Documents filed to the council say: “Opportunities to accommodate large-scale inward investment in South Derbyshire are increasingly limited.
“Only a small number of sites, primarily Dove Valley Park and Woodville, offer potential to meet major occupier requirements in the near term, and each faces constraints.
“At Dove Valley, several plots have already been acquired by occupiers for future use, reducing availability.
“At Woodville, the employment land requires remediation and currently only has outline planning permission.
“In parallel, the supply of employment land has been eroded by large redevelopment schemes. [Residential-led] projects at Hilton (St Modwen) and Drakelow (Countryside) have resulted in the loss of former employment areas, with similar patterns emerging elsewhere. “These changes reflect shifting land-use priorities and contribute to the growing scarcity of suitable sites for major economic investment within the district.”
