Coffee with Craig Show – daily CRE news covering the CEE region, Tuesday, August 23, with Winston Norman, Editor and Chief of EuropaProperty.com.
Corwin sells Blumental Offices to Czech real estate fund ZFP
Slovak developer, Corwin, has sold the Blumental Offices to Czech Real Estate Fund ZFP. The property comprises over 16,000 sqm of office space and almost 3,500 sqm of retail premises.
Blumental is located in Bratislava’s City Centre and ranks among the most sustainable buildings in the country. The project has a line-up of tenants with a strong focus on ESG values, including Zurich Insurance Company Ltd., JLL, TPA AUDIT and P3 Logistics.
Fraser Watson, Director of Investment Advisory at Savills CZ and SK, says: “The conclusion of this transaction at such a time in the market cycle reiterates that core assets with strong all-around fundamentals are sought after and tradeable and we take pride in having been involved in this successful disposal process.”
Robert Mitterpach, CFO of Corwin, said: “When we first came to the site where Blumental would be built, it was an abandoned brownfield and a black mark on the map of Bratislava.”
Peter Lukáč, Vice Chairman of ZFP Investments, comments: “Blumental Offices meets all the requirements for a premium property and perfectly suits our diversified portfolio.”
Helaba is financing Prague’s NR7
Helaba is providing long-term financing for the Czech project developer Crestyl for the revitalization of the well-known office “NR7” in a prime downtown location in Prague. With a total loan amount of almost €41 million, the historic premium property (built-in 1905) will be upgraded into a sustainably modern landmark building.
Martin Erbe, Head of Real Estate Finance CEE, Benelux and International Clients in Germany at Helaba, commented: “The office market in Prague is one of Helaba’s key markets in Europe and we are very pleased to add this transaction to our existing financing portfolio.”
GTC to sell Matrix A and B in Zagreb
GTC is to sell its A-class Matrix A and B office buildings in Zagreb to a strong local real estate group from Croatia. This transaction will mark a return on cost exceeding 22 percent and is about 7 percent above the book value. The planned closing date of the transaction is the end of Q3 2022.
Matrix Office Park provides a total of 21,440 sqm of leasable space. Matrix A was completed in 2019, followed by Matrix B just a year later. Both buildings are LEED Platinum certified. GTC has already started the development of the third building, Matrix C, which is set to be delivered in Q2 2023.
”Our strategy to sell some of the existing projects to invest in new ones performs extremely well, and our previous sales are a proof point to it,” said Zoltán Fekete, CEO of GTC.
BIG acquires two shopping centers in Poland
BIG Shopping Centre has entered the Polish market by purchasing two shopping centres in Poland with a total value of €65 million. Hay Galis, CEO of BIG, notes that these two acquisitions support the company’s growth plans to become a dominant player in the Retail Park sector in Poland.
The first commercial centre is located in the city of Andrychow and comes with a leasable area (GLA) of approx. 23,300 sqm with an occupancy rate of 100 percent.
The second commercial centre in Lubin includes a leasable area (GLA) of approx. 13,300 sqm and is expected to be open to the public in September 2022 with an occupancy rate of approx. 100 percent. The commercial centre has several anchor tenants and leading brands in Europe, including CARREFOUR, Media Expert, Sports Direct, CCC, Sinsay, Jula, and more.
Hay Galis, CEO of BIG, commented: “Entering the Polish market is essential to becoming a prominent player in the market and Poland is full of potential for development.”
Elite Partners continues acquisition spree in Poland
Elite Partners Capital has completed an off-market acquisition of a warehouse in Radomsko, Poland for close to €30 million.
The asset is well-located in Central Poland. It is the first facility within “LOOGIC Park Radomsko” logistics park which will eventually house 11 warehouse halls totalling 380,000 sqm over 80 hectares of land.
The warehouse provides a total usable area of 54,000 sqm and achieved an ‘Excellent’ BREEAM certification. It was developed as a Built-to-Suit facility for JYSK, a big box retailer of household goods.
Victor Song, CEO of Elite Partners Capital, commented: “We are no stranger to the Polish market and have forged trusted relationships on the ground. Because of this, we are able to efficiently source for select opportunities that provide attractive returns even in today’s volatile market.”
