Commercial property consultancy Knight Frank say office take-up in Aberdeen is on track to double last year’s total.
Increasing activity in the oil and gas sector was being reflected in property deals, the firm said.
Knight Frank believes office transactions in the Granite City will exceed 400,000 square feet during 2022 – despite a slight slow-down in the third quarter.
Matthew Park, a partner at Knight Frank Aberdeen, is confident further deals will be sealed before the end of the year as the city’s office market is “bouncing back” from the impact of Covid-19.
He said: “There are enough transactions in the pipeline to believe that we can surpass 400,000sq ft for the year, which would be more than double 2021’s total."
So far this year, 304,352 square feet of office space has been transacted in Aberdeen.
This includes 195,905 square feet in the first quarter, 60,521 square feet in the second quarter and 47,926 square feet in the third quarter.
Mr Park added:“The sustained high price of at around $100 per barrel and the prospect of more than 100 new North Sea licences being awarded to boost domestic oil and gas production in the next licensing round is trickling through into property deals, with more oil services and drilling companies issuing contract-led requirements.
“All things being equal, we would expect that to continue in the final quarter and into 2023."
The largest deal of the third quarter was Dolphin Drilling, an Aberdeen-based offshore drilling rig company, securing 9,000 square feet of office space at D2 Business Park in Dyce, a business park close to Aberdeen Airport and conference centre.