Anglo American Plc, which owns 85 percent of De Beers, is planning to redevelop the iconic Charterhouse Street premises that served as the De Beers head office and was the location where its clients received their Sights for the better part of the 20th century as its own headquarters, reports Bloomberg.
The report, which quotes sources who are in the know of Anglo’s plans, says it intends to modernise the Charterhouse Street property and then transfer staff there from its current premises near Buckingham Palace.
Anglo still needs to get planning and regulatory approvals for the project. An Anglo American spokesman acknowledged that a redevelopment of the Charterhouse Street property was under consideration.
The old De Beers office on Charterhouse Street also housed its vaults, where it stored its rough diamond stockpile, worth some $5 billion at one point, as well as sorting facilities. A helipad on the property’s roof is still used by the Oppenheimer family, which sold their stake in De Beers to Anglo American in 2012.
De Beers staff were moved out of the Charterhouse Street office as Anglo American undertook a drastic restructuring after almost completely collapsing during the commodity price bust in 2015.
The lease on Anglo’s current headquarters at Carlton House Terrace runs out in 2020, and its owners have sought to sell the premises.
https://www.gemkonnect.com/news/anglo-american-may-move-hq-iconic-charterhouse-street-premises