The site has been up for sale since its former owners, backed by Real Estate Opportunities, called in Ernst & Young after Lloyds Banking Group and the Irish National Asset Management Agency sought repayment of a £324m loan.
Ernst & Young says it has entered into entered into an exclusivity agreement with SP Setia and Sime Darby who beat a bid from Chelsea Football Club. The companies will have 28 days to carry out due diligence before proceeding with the purchase.
The planned development of the historic site included 3,400 new homes and promised over 15,000 new jobs and training opportunities.
The scheme was seen as the catalyst for regenerating the Nine Elms area, with developers helping to fund an extension of the Northern Line to Nine Elms and Battersea.
The two companies say they are committed to delivering the extension.
The collapse into administration last November came just days after Mayor of London Boris Johnson and Chancellor George Osborne visited the site.
Johnson subsequently claimed he had “the Government’s full support” for the redevelopment, however despite the Mayor’s boast no Government money had been offered for the project.
On Thursday Johnson welcomed news of the potential sale, saying it offered “light at the end of the tunnel in the sorry saga that has dogged this great landmark for decades and the surrounding area.”
The Mayor added: “There is still detailed work to do but this is an encouraging step forward. In particular the firm commitment on the table to invest in the vital new transport link will drive the regeneration of this important corner of the capital that has been neglected for so long.”
