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Supermarket giant J Sainsbury has agreed a deal with developer British Land to place 38 of its stores into a joint partnership.

The £1.2 billion deal will see British Land actively asset manage and administer the properties, which are currently owned by the developer and leased to J Sainsbury.

The creation of the joint venture will, J Sainsbury said, unlock the opportunity to significantly develop the stores and improve the service offered to customers.

Up to 25 sites will be developed by an estimated 500,000sq ft of net selling area.

J Sainsbury chief executive Justin King said the company is "delighted" to be working alongside British Land.

"This venture is an excellent opportunity for Sainsbury's to increase our interest in the future extension and development of many of our most important stores," he added.

"This will enable us to enhance the customer offer, increasing both the trading and property value of these assets."

British Land chief executive Stephen Hester commented: "Today's agreement more closely aligns the interests of property owner and retailer to deliver value to shareholders in both companies.

"It acts as a catalyst to increase capital value by improving, through extensions and developments, the Sainsbury stores."

The property announcement follows J Sainsbury's fourth quarter trading statement, which it claims shows good sales growth and that three-year targets have been achieved.

Total sales for the 12 weeks to March 22nd 2008 rose by 6.7 per cent and like-for-like sales were up six per cent.

The sales target of £2.5 billion was achieved and surpassed with £2.7 billion of sales growth.

"This is an outstanding success and I would like to thank and congratulate all 150,000 Sainsbury's colleagues for the part they played in achieving this," Mr King said.