US architect Perkins + Will has opened an office in central London as a base from which to expand in the UK and Europe.

The firm, which is working on the £1bn Merchant Square development at the Paddington Basin, west London, said its office, near Oxford Street in the West End, would serve as a centre for operations in Europe.

Last year, Perkins + Will earned $268.3m (£131.6m), of which $32.9m (£16.1m) was from outside the US.

Raymond Clark, managing principal of the Chicago office, said: “The genesis of this launch lies with our Chicago office winning the design competition for Merchant Square in Paddington. With the development gearing up to start on site, we have been building up the office, not only to service this, but further projects in the UK , Europe and Middle East.”

The London office will be run by Taidg O’Malley, the group associate principal. Merchant Square is scheduled to complete by 2012, although the first building is due to open in November 2009.

European Land, the site owner, plans to develop mixed-use buildings around a public square beside the Grand Union Canal.