Qatar, Abu Dhabi in bid for iconic London power station

Abu Dhabi and Qatar are among a number of potential investors who have expressed interest in bidding for the Battersea power station site in London, it was reported on Sunday. Li Ka-shing, Hong Kong’s richest man, may bid for the Battersea power station site in London, the UK-based Sunday Times newspaper said, without saying where it got the information. Li’s Hutchison Whampoa expressed “serious interest” in the 38-acre site, which is being put up for sale with a deadline for first-round bids in May, according to the report. The offer for the site on the south bank of the Thames also drew developers including Berkeley Group Holdings, British Land, Land Securities Group, and sovereign wealth funds from Abu Dhabi and Qatar, according to the newspaper, which said the derelict landmark would attract bids of GBP£250m pounds ($US396m) to GBP£350m pounds. Winnie Cheong, a spokeswoman for Cheung Kong Holdings, did not immediately return a phone message or e-mail seeking comment when contacted by Bloomberg. The deal would the latest in a series of trophy assets Qatar has acquired in the British capital in recent years, including the Harrods department store, The Shard of Glass building and Chelsea Barracks.