GREENOCK businessmen Sandy and James Easdale have snapped up two prime pieces of land for nearly £160,000.

Hot on the heels of their £3.1 million acquisition of Cappielow Trade Park a fortnight ago, the McGill's Buses owners have now bought two plots in Cartsburn Street, just off the A8 main road.

They have bolstered their commercial property portfolio with the purchase of land between the Greenock ambulance depot and the Webhelp office, which the family already own, and another section opposite the call centre building.

Both sites are just under an acre in size and were sold off by Scottish Enterprise at auction for a total of £158,000.

They are next to the Victory Court office block, partly occupied by the procurator fiscal service, and Holt Court, where Webhelp is based.

The Easdale family bought both buildings in 2013 for a total of £1.2m after they too were sold at auction by Scottish Enterprise.

Jack Irvine, spokesman for the Easdale family, said: "The acquisition made sense for Sandy and James given the property already owned by the family in the immediate vicinity.

"Once all the paperwork is completed then a decision will be taken on whether to explore the development of the sites in the coming years."

The land went under the hammer last month and sold for three times the combined value price, according to SVA Property Auctions which conducted the sale.

The three-quarter acre site in front of Victory Court went for £110,000 but the deal includes ownership of some surrounding roads, increasing the size to 1.6 acres.

The 0.13 acre plot sandwiched between the ambulance depot and Holt Court fetched £48,000.

A fortnight ago, the Easdales bolstered their portfolio with the purchase of Cappielow Trade Park for £3.1 million.

At the time, they hinted that there were more acquisitions in the pipeline.

James Easdale said: "We are embarking on a determined investment drive across a range of commercial and residential property opportunities not only in and around Inverclyde and greater Glasgow but also in locations around Scotland and the United Kingdom.

"We're currently making good progress with finalising a number of other commercial property purchases and, as we have found recently, each successful transaction often leads to a host of new opportunities for us to consider and progress."