Mining and property company UK COAL has successfully sold over 1,500 acres of agricultural land and woodland in the East Midlands and the North East for almost Ј5 million.

The two-day auction conducted by Smiths Gore involved 1,790 acres of agricultural and amenity land and sporting rights, mainly on restored sites no longer required for operational purposes, in Leicestershire, Derbyshire and Co. Durham. The 28 lots sold for a total of Ј4.75m - around 50% more than the value at which UK COAL had held the land in its asset register.

UK COAL Property Director Jon Lloyd said: “We are delighted with the result; the prices achieved demonstrates the continuing strength and market appetite for property of this type that we have throughout the North and Midlands.”

Restored opencast grassland with woodland in Leicestershire achieved up to Ј2,000 an acre, with similar land in Derbyshire realising up to Ј3,700 an acre. The abandoned Marehay Hall, Denby, a former Victorian farmhouse, outbuildings and 18 acres, sold for Ј420,000; 127 acres (including 35 acres of young woodland) made Ј445,000; 47 acres of young woodland and ponds sold for Ј121,000; 145 acres of grassland at Ibstock realised Ј540,000 and a six acre lake with eight acres of young woodland, also at Ibstock, went under the hammer for Ј120,000.

Restored land with woodland in Co. Durham sold at prices ranging from Ј1,800 an acre to Ј3,000 an acre, with 171 acres of woodland with 338 acres of sporting rights realising Ј225,000, and 102 acres of grassland on a full agricultural tenancy selling for Ј195,000.

Simon Bainbridge of Smiths Gore’s Darlington office and auctioneer for both days of the sale said: “This was a diverse sale offering a broad variety of land and lot sizes and as a result generated a huge number of enquiries in both areas.

Interestingly the larger lots attracted the most competitive bidding on the sale days and the prices for much of the grassland reflects the quality of the restoration works. The amenity land attracted strong interest and the prices achieved indicated high demand, particularly for water and potential for angling”

Philip Coles, the Smiths Gore Partner in overall charge of the firm’s work for UK COAL said: “The outstanding result of the two-day auction was underpinned by the rising market for agricultural land and rural property. Agricultural land owners such as UK COAL with significant portfolios are able to take advantage of this strong demand, particularly where, as in this case, the portfolios are well located in mainly urban areas in the Midlands and the North”