Scottish housebuilder Cala Group said yesterday it was unfazed by the impact of low oil prices on Aberdeen and revealed it is on course to post record profits for the year.
The company, which has its roots in the Aberdeen, set up a new home sales division in the Granite City last March and is heavily involved in several housing projects in the area.
Last week, Aberdeen city councillors approved its development plan for 107 properties and a further 12 affordable flats in north Cults.
The company is also one of the builders expected to take part in the Grandhome development near Danestone, the first phase of which received permission in principle three weeks ago.
Cala chief executive Alan Brown said: “We’re pleased with the way our Aberdeen business is performing.
“It has only been a year since we split that business off from the rest of the group and we have expanded it significantly.
“The Aberdeen market is performing fine and is in line with our expectations. We’re not worried about what is happening in Aberdeen at present.”
Mr Brown said the group expects its revenue for the 12 months ending June 2015 to skyrocket to about £500million, compared with £294million a year earlier.
Full-year pre-tax profits will not be published until September, but Mr Brown said the firm was confident about beating last year’s total of £27million.
He said demand had continued to grow, thanks in part to the greater availability of record low mortgage rates, the strength of the UK economy and a dearth in supply.
Cala, which stands for City of Aberdeen Land Association, was founded in the north-east in 1875.
Having started as a land-management business, the firm branched out into housing in the mid-1970s before relocating to Edinburgh in 1978.
It focuses its efforts on the more well-heeled areas of the UK, such as the Home Counties and the Cotswolds plus parts of Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow.
The group expanded its business in the south-east of England last March, when it bought Banner Homes in a deal thought to be worth £200million.
Its average house prices rose to £537,000 in the eight months ending February 28, 2015, against £423,000 for the year to June 30, 2014.
Cala said it received planning permission for 33 sites, with a potential gross value of £417million, during the same eight month period. It now has 13,400 plots, with a potential gross value of £5billion in its portfolio.