An Oxfordshire advanced engineering firm has been confirmed as the first occupier of the much-anticipated Bicester Arc commercial business park.

PEVERIL Securities and Sladen Estates have submitted the first planning application for the Bicester Arc commercial business park, located close to Bicester Village retail park off the A41 in Bicester.

The planning submission for a new head office complex and technology building is for advanced engineering firm YASA and follows the availability of a major electricity provision to the 48-acre site to support occupiers’ requirements.

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Rachel Wood, managing director at Sladen Estates, said: “Following on from securing a new major electricity supply to Bicester Arc, we are pleased to be able to submit our first planning application for the site.

“This first phase will provide a 47,925 square foot headquarter office building and a 50,000 square foot R&D technology building for Oxfordshire-based advanced engineering firm YASA - a wholly owned subsidiary of Mercedes-Benz AG and developer of industry-leading electrical vehicle propulsion systems.”

Bicester Arc already has outline planning permission for 60,000 square metres of office and employment space. It is located two miles from Junction 9 of the M40, has strong rail links into London and the Midlands, and sits located between Oxford and Cambridge at the heart of the UK’s automotive tech centre.

Ralph Jones, managing director at Peveril Securities, said: “Following on from our acquisition of the site, we have been diligently working to secure our electricity supply to the site to ensure we can deliver a high-quality product to prospective occupiers.

“With a dedicated supply of 13.5mva and being part of Bowmer + Kirkland – one of the largest privately-owned construction groups in the UK – we are able to offer unrivalled delivery expertise and guarantees.”

Peveril Securities and Sladen Estates has delivered development schemes up and down the country.

The partnership has expanded its national development portfolio throughout the country, following the recent completion of a 1.7m square foot Amazon distribution centre in Sutton-in-Ashfield and the 275,000 square foot HMRC East Midlands regional hub in Nottingham and 361 student bed scheme at Guildford.

YASA was founded in 2009, a spin out from Oxford University following the PhD of founder and still CTO, Dr Tim Woolmer.

In 2013, YASA Motors powered a converted Lola LeMans Prototype, which set a then sub-1000kg electric land speed record.

In 2015 and 2016, YASA powered race cars achieved an overall win and the first sub-9 minute run from an electric car at the Pikes Peak Hillclimb.

YASA supplied motors also took speed records both on the water and in the air.

 

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This story was written by Matthew Norman, he joined the team in 2022 as a Facebook community reporter.

Matthew covers Bicester and focuses on finding stories from diverse communities.

Get in touch with him by emailing: Matthew.norman@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter: @OxMailMattN1