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The value of the site of London's O2 arena appears to have plummeted as a result of the recession.
The owners are looking to offload the land where the venue stands for about £20 million, a drop of £15 million on what it was seeking six months ago.
Trinity College, Cambridge, the wealthiest of the Oxbridge colleges, has an impressive property portfolio and is said to be in talks to take over the 999-year lease.
The site's joint owners are property firm Quintain and Lend Lease.
But AEG, the US entertainment giant that runs the former Millenium Dome arena, said the O2 itself was not being sold. A spokesman insisted: “The O2 is absolutely not for sale — it is the landlord's interest in the land on which it sits that is.
“This means that the owners of that land, current and future, will receive a rental income from AEG Europe, owners and operators of the venue.”
Quintain earned £1.6 million in rent from the O2's first 16 months in operation.
The former Millennium Dome began life as a concert venue in 2007. But Quintain has been badly hit by the property crash and is selling
£100 million of assets. With Australian firm Lend Lease, it controls the Greenwich peninsula site.
Transport for London is moving staff to new offices there, while Ravensbourne College is building a facility for 1,500 students. Almost 1,300 homes are due to be built.
