The Royal Institution (Ri) may be forced to sell its main home in London after refurbishing the building plunged it into financial difficulty in recent years.

The 200-year-old science communication charity completed a refurbishment of its Albemarle Street building in Mayfair in 2008, but has not been able recover costs. Yesterday the BBC and the Times reported that the charity had been in touch with an estate agent.

In a statement on its website, chairman Sir Richard Sykes said: “It is well known that the redevelopment of the Ri's building during the last decade undermined the financial position of the charity.”

He added: “The Ri and its advisers are exploring a range of options to ensure it can continue to pursue fully its charitable aims and deploy its resources optimally. It is clear that this is likely to involve a restructuring of the charity and, ideally, a substantial partnership. It may also involve the Ri subletting or disposing of some or all of its Albemarle Street property.”

Staff, Ri members and other stakeholders will be informed of any decisions “promptly” the statement said.

Scale of the financial problems

The full extent of the charity’s difficulties is outlined in its latest set of accounts, filed with the Charity Commission last summer for the financial year September 2010 to September 2011.

Ri is operating with a deficit of £7.1m. “This reality has created the most challenging of situations and members should be aware that the recovery of the Ri has been delayed as a consequence of operating with this level of net debt and the consequent pressure on cashflow,” the report explains.

Trustees reveal that the charity has taken out a loan of £3.05m over seven years, and has an overdraft of £2m, from HSBC. This has been secured against the Albemarle Street property.

They explain that: “The loan has provided the trustees with headroom and allowed the Ri further time in which to raise new funds and invest in the future strategy.”

The Albemarle Street building is held on the charity’s books at £22.3m but in July was valued at £45m.