WEST Devon attraction Morwellham Quay, which went into administration in September, is being marketed for sale as a going concern with a guide price of £1.1-million

The administrators of the Morwellham and Tamar Valley Trust have appointed international property consultants King Sturge to market the award-winning open air mining museum and its associated attractions, including a copper mine, farm and visitor centre.

The site will be marketed for informal tender with expressions of interests and bids having to be made by the middle of January. Interest has already been shown by a number of individuals and businesses, the agents have said.

Eighteen employees were made redundant when the site went into administration after years of struggling financially.

When Devon County Council announced it would no longer put taxpayers' money into the complex — seen as a key centre in the Cornwall and West Devon World Mining Heritage Area — it was the end of the road for the trust, which claimed it was on the brink of turning the attraction around.

The council had injected £1.2-million into Morwellham over the last three years and the site also attracted lottery funding, which had been spent on a major revamp ahead of the implementation of a marketing strategy to boost visitor numbers.

Administrators Grant Thornton said a number of key employees had been retained to undertake routine maintenance work to ensure the site was ready for next season, look after livestock on the 220-acre farm and support the Lion TV production schedule which was still ongoing.

Nigel Morrison from Grant Thornton UK LLP said: 'We are committed to selling Morwellham Quay as a going concern and King Sturge is dealing with various offers for this unique heritage site.

'A sale as a going concern will ensure that the trust's obligations to its stakeholders, including the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Tamar Valley AONB and the World Heritage Site for the Devon and Cornwall Mining Landscape are fulfilled.'

Anyone interested in acquiring the site should contact John Kinsey at King Sturge's Exeter office on 01392 423696. Anyone who has events scheduled at Morwellham Quay should contact David Cutts of Grant Thornton on 0118 983 9611.

Mr Kinsey said the agents were looking to sell the site as a whole initially but if people were interested in various parts of the site then that would be considered if it helped to keep the whole attraction going. Morwellham was being marketed locally, regionally and nationally, he said.