The long-awaited OJEC notice inviting expressions of interest from companies wanting to manage the BBC's extensive property portfolio will be published within the next few days. But, says the BBC's spokesperson, speculation about what sites will be revamped is premature and the "very, very detailed tendering process" will not conclude until early next year.

The "Corporate PFI" type deal, in which the BBC will form a joint venture with a property company who will be responsible for raising the significant sums needed for investment, seeks to get round the problems facing the Corporation as it aims to revitalise an ageing and sometimes inappropriate portfolio of 522 sites.

"The BBC does not want to spend licence fees on property when it could be spending them on programme making," Jane Futrell, the Beeb's property communications strategist told I-FM "and we cannot borrow against our property because of our Royal Charter." Therefore, taking on a private partner who will be rewarded with a "very attractive, twenty to thirty year" relationship with the BBC makes good sense. The BBC has been advised by Rothschilds on the deal.

However, speculation about the revamp of Broadcasting House as a centrepiece for the organisation is premature, Jane Futrell continued. A piece in The Times on Monday 10 April had suggested that the central London facility would be "transformed" into a centre for radio output, while at the same time housing leisure facilities and shops and restaurants. The Times had said that the scheme would see the glassing over of Langham Street if planning permission was granted for the scheme and the return of most of the BBC's radio operations from White City - but Jane Futrell said that these assumptions are not yet set in stone.

The key component of the OJEC tender notice however, will be the plan to revamp the White City site, which has always been intended to house more buildings. The ability for a company or consortium to be able to raise the significant cash required for the West London site will be a "benchmark" for ensuring that the BBC take expressions of interest seriously. "If they can do that they will probably be serious contenders for the project," said Ms Futrell.

While accepting that the plan is forward-thinking, Ms Futrell said that the BBC has historically looked to save money from its property portfolio. The BBC identified that it could make significant savings from its sites in the early 1990s, offloading £1m worth of property assets in 1993, saving £20m in cash and generating a saving of £15m a year. But it also realised that the industry has moved on and much of the property available to the BBC is no longer appropriate.

"In 1998 we launched an initiative called 20:20 vision which decided to look at all our property," explained Ms Futrell. "We have 522 properties across the UK – some of which are great, some no longer suited to our purposes. We recognised that if we were going to make our buildings more cost-effective, cut down on the rate of churn, give our talent somewhere good to work - and our talent is more in demand than ever - make our buildings less forbidding to the public and more accessible to them, then we were going to need some significant investment." A total of 7.5 million sq ft worth some £500 million will come under review over several years.

While the solution to take on a private partner may be an obvious route for the BBC, it also accepts that it is an innovative one. "Yes, we have taken a forward-thinking approach and it is a major undertaking. But we are not property developers, we are programme makers and we want to get back to core business."

The process is also likely to be lengthy. "No decisions are going to be made quickly. The tendering process is very very detailed and we make no apology for that, we want to get it right. But then we always say Walking with Dinosaurs took three years to make - what's a property decision compared to that?"

The OJEC notice is the first step but the BBC were unable to say when it will appear since it is no longer within their control – it could be the next two days or the next two weeks. Interested parties who don't want to trawl the daily journal for themselves can of course, simply watch this space as I-FM keeps you fully updated.

Fiona Perrin