Facebook Said to Be in Talks for London King's Cross Offices

(Bloomberg) -- Facebook Inc. is in negotiations to lease a new London office close to the planned headquarters of Google, two people with knowledge of the talks said.

The company plans to lease at least 400,000 square feet (37,000 square meters) of space at the King's Cross Central development, where Google parent Alphabet Inc. will develop its new U.K. headquarters, the people said, asking not to be identified because the talks are ongoing. The size of the lease could change and it's not certain a deal will be completed, they said.

A spokeswoman for Argent LLP, which is developing the project, and a representative of Menlo Park, California-based Facebook declined to comment.

The world's largest technology companies, including Apple Inc. and Amazon.com Inc., have leased major new offices in the U.K. capital, lured by the abundance of skilled young workers. Apple plans to move staff into a new London headquarters at the Battersea Power Station project, and Amazon has recently begun moving staff into a new U.K. base in the Shoreditch district on the edge of the City of London. 

Facebook has already signed an agreement to lease a U.K office close to Oxford Street. The company chose not to exercise an option to lease a third, smaller property on Oxford Street, developer Great Portland Estates Plc said in January.

There is about 800,000 square feet of office space still available at the King's Cross development across several planned buildings. The largest is 11-21 Canal Reach, which will have about 400,000 square feet, according to the development's website.

--With assistance from Sarah Frier

To contact the reporter on this story: Jack Sidders in London at jsidders@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Daniel Taub at dtaub@bloomberg.net, Christine Maurus, Kara Wetzel

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