Development of a New Regional Hub

DX (Group) PLC

14 June 2023

 

AIM: DX.

DX (Group) plc

("DX" or "the Group")

Development of a New Regional Hub

DX, a leading provider of delivery solutions, including parcel freight, secure courier, 2-Man and logistics services, is pleased to announce the proposed development of a major new Regional Hub in the East Midlands. The proposed new hub, which will include a new depot serving the local area, is expected to cost approximately £12 million, including site acquisition, and will be funded from DX's existing cash resources. Detailed planning permission has been secured and the acquisition of the site is expected to complete within the next two months.

The new hub will be located on a 4.5-acre redevelopment scheme near Nottingham at New Stanton Park Industrial Estate. It will have a 25,000 sq ft footprint and will be developed to service the Group's parcel freight activities. The new hub and depot will provide significant additional regional capacity and improve efficiency by reducing stem mileage. Construction, which will benefit from a raised dock and mechanisation, is expected to be completed during Q2 2024. The new depot will replace an existing freight depot in Nottingham, which will become a dedicated 2-Man supersite.

The investment is in line with the Board's stated strategy to make property investments that support the ongoing growth of the Group's operations and is a key part of its capital allocation policy. Further property investment will be considered as appropriate.

The investment in the new regional hub is in addition to DX's three-year investment programme of between £20-£25 million, which is currently in its second year. This programme is focused on expanding the Group's depot network, adding handling equipment and enhancing IT.

Paul Ibbetson, Chief Executive Officer of DX (Group) plc, commented,

"The purchase of this site in Nottingham will enable us to create a major new regional hub and depot for our parcel freight operations and is in line with our plans to make strategic property investments. The investment will increase our capacity, drive efficiency improvements as well as enhance customer service. Further site openings and upgrades are planned as we continue to invest in developing the Group's network in line with our growth plans."

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) 596/2012 as it forms part of UK domestic law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 ("MAR"), and is disclosed in accordance with the Company's obligations under Article 17 of MAR. The person responsible for making this announcement is Simon Blunt, Company Secretary.

Enquiries:

DX (Group) plc		T: 020 3178 6378 (c/o KTZ
Paul Ibbetson, Chief Executive Officer		Communications)
David Mulligan, Chief Financial Officer
Liberum (Nominated Adviser and Joint broker to DX)		T: 020 3100 2000
Nick How, William Hall, Lucas Bamber
finnCap (Joint Broker to DX)		T: 020 7220 0500
Matt Goode/Simon Hicks (Corporate Finance)
Andrew Burdis/Charlotte Sutcliffe (Corporate Broking)
KTZ Communications		T: 020 3178 6378
Katie Tzouliadis/Robert Morton

About DX (Group) plc:

DX is a well-established provider of a wide range of delivery services to both business and residential addresses across the UK and Ireland. First established in 1975 as a Document Exchange service to the legal sector, DX now provides one of the widest ranges of overnight delivery services in the market, as well as logistics services. Items that DX transports range from confidential documents and valuable packages to large, awkward-to-handle freight, unsuitable for automated conveyor.

The Group operates through two divisions, DX Freight and DX Express.

·      DX Freight comprises DX 1-Man, and Logistics/2-Man, with the Division being only one of a small number of operators that provides an overnight delivery service for irregular dimension and weight freight ("IDW").

·      DX Express comprises DX Parcels and DX Exchange and Mail, with the Division specialising in the express delivery, including pre-9am, of parcels and documents.

 

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