Support services group DCC confirmed yesterday it is seeking a buyer for Manor Park Homebuilders, a move that is expected to net the group about €350 million in cash, considerably more than the €55,000 it is believed to have paid for it back in the 1970s.

The proceeds are expected to be returned to shareholders in the form of a special dividend or used to expand the group's energy or environmental services business.

Jim Flavin, chief executive of DCC, said yesterday the company had reached an agreement with Joe Moran, who owns 51 per cent of Manor Park, to seek a buyer for 100 per cent of the group.

Analysts estimate it will be sold for about €700 million, although it is possible this figure may rise if the assets, which include the 200-acre Abbeville estate formerly owned by Charlie Haughey, are sold off separately.

In the year to March last, Manor Park's profits rose 67 per cent to €61.1 million.

No timescale was given yesterday for the sale, although one Dublin trader said talk of a dispute between DCC and Mr Moran over the future of Manor Park suggested it may take a while to arrange.

Goodbody Corporate Finance and IBI Corporate Finance are managing the sale.

While DCC, which saw its profits rise 20 per cent in the first half, is known for its bolt-on acquisitions, analysts said its balance sheet was sufficiently healthy to carry out a sizeable deal without this extra cash.

Mr Flavin said the Manor Park land now had a property value that surpasses its business potential.