He walks his dogs here regularly. It is not hard to see why. These days, the hulk of the former coal-fired power station is no longer the sad, derelict site it once was.

There is a constant hum of activity as workmen come and go and a vibrant new community is taking shape, complete with viewing elevator in one of the iconic chimneys, a jetty destined to become an event space, independent stores, bars, coffee shops and eateries and, of course, state-of-the-art office space for tech giant Apple.

For locals like the dog walker, it must be exciting to witness day-by-day the site’s transformation 35 years after Battersea finally closed its doors as a working power station.

It is even more exciting for the man who took over from Rob Tincknell when he left Battersea Power Station Development Company (BPSDC) last April to launch Areli Real Estate.

Property Week caught up with former CFO and deputy CEO – now CEO – Simon Murphy to hear from the horse’s mouth how the scheme is progressing.