Persian broadcaster Marjan Television Network has agreed to take over the former Wimbledon Studios site.

The 220,000 sq ft facility became available after property firm Panther Securities, which holds a 25% stake in Wimbledon Studios and owns the freehold of the site, put the company into administration earlier this month.

Marjan operates Persian language channel Manoto 1, which is distributed via satellite across Europe, the Middle East and Iran and is currently based at Capital Studios in Wandsworth.

According to the broadcaster, 60% of its programmes are original productions that are created in the UK.

Marjan has agreed a 15-year lease and will pay annual rent to Panther of just over £1m.

It will pay two-and-a-half years rent in advance, which will provide Panther with funds for the £500,000 replacement of the majority of the facility’s roof, as well as upgrades to its electricity supply.

Panther said the work should be finished by October, when Marjan will take over the facility and some 150 of its employees will move in.

It is not yet known if any of the Wimbledon facility’s two 8,000 sq ft and one 4,000 sq ft studios will be made available for other production companies to use.

Panther purchased the site, which is the former home of The Bill, in 2010.

It said the cost of changing it from a fixed-set filming location to a “multi let” studio was far more than anticipated and took longer to achieve than originally planned. Panther said it could no longer continue to support the “non-core” studios business as it did not believe it would reach profitability in the medium term and that it required “significant funds”.

Earlier this year, Marjan examined the possibility of sub-leasing part of the site from Wimbledon Studios, but entered direct negotiations with Panther after doubts emerged about the long-term future of the studios.