UK-based property giant Hammerson has put its Irish and French shopping centres at the top of a new strategy as it faces continuing investor pressure despite seeing off an unwelcome bid earlier this year.

Hammerson, the owner of Dundrum and Swords shopping centres, the 1916 battlefield site in central Dublin, as well as Kildare Village, is marshalling an uplift in the value of its Irish assets to help bolster its defences as it prepares to fight off the advances of €5.6bn takeover bid from French rival Klepierre.

UK-based property giant Hammerson, which owns half of Dundrum Shopping Centre, Ireland largest mall, has rejected a £4.88bn (€5.53bn) bid from a rival European shopping centre operator, France’s Klepierre.

Shopping centre owner Hammerson has agreed an all share takeover of rival Intu in a £3.4bn (€3.84bn) deal that will create Britain’s biggest property company.