Minerva has secured a deal with creditors to give it breathing space under its £1bn debt burden until after June 2011.

The restructuring agreed with banks Deutsche Postbank, HSH Nordbank, Nationwide, Lloyds and Landesbank Berlin includes deferring or removing important covenant tests, including tests of loan-to-value or net worth, with the exception of two small loan facilities, as well as rescheduling debt maturities.

The company has been in talks after it foresaw a potential covenant breach in June 2009.

Property developers face the threat of defaults and pressure to cut rents. This month, Nomura secured a six-year rent-free deal on its new City of London headquarters – one of a series of recent office lets featuring low rents and several years free of rent.

Financial Times, The Times, Daily Telegraph