Publisher Taylor & Francis, which is bidding for the feud-ridden Blackwell Publishing, is to move its entire journals business into a new building in Oxfordshire.

The move to Milton Park, near Didcot, would place the company in a perfect geographical position to incorporate Blackwell Publishing, which is considering the £300m bid behind closed doors.

Last week, an emergency meeting of Blackwell Publishing's board was postponed for talks between Toby Blackwell, who wants to sell, and his nephew Nigel, who is opposed to a trade sale.

Some 50 of Taylor & Francis's journals staff currently work at Abingdon Science Park, with more than 30 at its headquarters in Fetter Lane, London, and another 30 at its office in Reading. Managing director David Smith said the move would happen in two phases, with the Abingdon and Reading staff moving in on Tuesday, May 7, and London staff by the summer.

He said all the Reading and London staff had been given the option of moving to Milton Park.

The Reading office is to close completely. It was formerly Gordon and Breach, which was taken over by Taylor & Francis last year.

Mr Smith said: "Some will go and some will not. It has not finally been settled yet because obviously the staff have to make the choice."

He added: "We have not enforced any redundancies."

However, the National Union of Journalists said 11 staff in Reading had received compulsory redundancy notices. Anna Wagstaff, secretary of the NUJ's Oxford branch said: "The move confirms Oxfordshire's position as the leading area after London for academic publishing, and we're looking forward to working with the 130 staff who will be moving to the new site."

However, she said staff in Abingdon were unhappy that the company was not prepared to compensate them for the extra travel to work, which would add an average of £400-£500 a year to their expenses.

According to the company's financial results, the redundancy, relocation and re-organisation costs are estimated at about £750,000.