Nuclear bunker put up for auction

The concrete building with metre-thick walls and steel shutters was built as an RAF communication base in the early 1990s at Templeton, near Tenby.

Auctioneers have put a guide price of £50,000 to £75,000 on the bunker, which will go under the hammer in December.

But they believe the above-ground building will be of interest to someone looking for secure storage, rather than as a home or office.

London-based auctioneers Andrews Robertson are selling the bunker on behalf of the Defence Estates, which is responsible for Ministry of Defence property and land.

Auctioneer Jeremy Lamb said: "There were around 10 to 15 built in the early 1990s by the RAF as communication centres.

"They have been selling them off over a number of years. We have sold some before - most recently south of Oxford - but they are quite unusual.

Nuclear bunker details

• Freehold with full vacant possession
• Gross internal area approx 600m sq
• Set on approx 1.26 acres
• Guide price £50,00-£75,000
• Auction on 13 December at Covent Garden, London

"They are very difficult to price because of the limitations with what you can do with them."

He said the owner of the last one he sold had recently gained B1 planning use - which meant it could be used as an office or for light industry - but there were usually very strict rules on their use.

"The most useful thing is the secure storage it offers - there is a very high level of security as it is nuclear-proof.

"They are designed to survive a missile attack and the fall-out, but not a direct hit.

"They don't tend to lend themselves to offices because of the lack of natural light."

He also said they were much smaller inside than they appeared from the outside because of the thickness of the walls.

Internally it is divided into several small rooms with an open plan space that was used for offices.

The building is on more than an acre of land on the edge of the disused airfield, which was used by the Army for a variety of training tasks, including helicopter and air defence exercises, low-level infantry tactics, and driver training.

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Andrews Robertson: Auctions
Defence Estates
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