Vía Célere Buys Land In Madrid, Sevilla & Valladolid For €36.1M

21 September 2017 – Expansión

Vía Célere, the real estate company acquired by the fund Värde Partners in February, has completed a new land purchase. Specifically, the property developer led by Juan Antonio Gómez-Pintado has bought three new plots of land, located in Getafe (Madrid), Sevilla and Valladolid, for a combined total of €36.1 million.

The greatest investment has been made in the Andalucían capital, where Vía Célere has acquired 150,000 m2 of buildable land, which will allow it to construct 1,700 family homes. It has spent €26.5 million on those plots.

In the case of Madrid, Vía Célere has paid €7.6 million for 21,000 m2 in Getafe, with the aim of building 158 family homes, whilst in Valladolid, the company has bought 4,400 m2 of land, for €2 million, where it will construct up to 39 homes.

With these latest purchases, Vía Célere has now spent €130 million buying up land in 2017, which has allowed it to expand its portfolio by almost 400,000 m2. Currently, the real estate company backed by Värde owns around 1.35 million m2 of residential land, making it one of the largest owners of this kind of asset in Spain.

Original story: Expansión (by Rocío Ruiz)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Amazon Opens 10,000 m2 Logistics Centre In Sevilla

13 September 2017 – Expansión

The US company has announced the entry into operation of a new logistics station, for the delivery of orders and products, in Sevilla. It is Amazon’s first centre in Andalucia, which will allow the company to operate with greater capacity and flexibility in the south of Spain.

The space will have a surface area of approximately 10,000 m2 and will see the creation of almost 80 jobs during the course of next year. The centre in Sevilla “will strengthen the distribution network in Spain and will allow us to satisfy the needs of clients”, says John Tagawa, Vice-President of Amazon for the European Union.

Intense presence

The e-commerce giant has decided to heavily back Spain. Its network in our country dates back to 2012, with the opening of a logistics centre in San Fernando de Henares, in Madrid, and another one shorter afterwards in the Barcelona municipality of Castellbisbal.

Moreover, the company plans to open two centres in Barcelona in autumn 2017: one in El Prat and the other one in Martorellas. A few months later, it will inaugurate a centre in Illescas (Toledo). Recently, the US giant also announced the opening of two logistics stations in Getafe and Valencia.

Original story: Expansión

Translation: Carmel Drake

Amazon Opens New Logistics Centre In Madrid

26 July 2017 – Expansión

Amazon has announced the inauguration of a new logistics depot in Getafe (Madrid), which will see the creation of around 80 direct jobs next year. This centre will allow Amazon “to operate in Spain with greater capacity and flexibility and whereby offer faster deliveries to its clients and a better service to businesses who sell their products on Amazon and use its logistics network”, according to the dot.com.

Moreover, Amazon has introduced new software for the distribution companies that work with it so that they can optimise their delivery times through route recommendations and, for example, by factoring in speed limits and daily traffic patterns.

The company led by Jeff Bezos may be planning to open a logistics macro-centre in Toledo and two more facilities in Madrid, which would create a network of 25 warehouses spread all over the country. For the time being, Amazon’s logistics network in Spain includes the San Fernando de Henares centre (Madrid) and a centre in Castellbisbal (Barcelona) dedicated to Amazon Pantry, as well as two urban centres in Madrid and Barcelona to serve its Prime Now users.

Original story: Expansión (by M. Juste)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Deutsche AM Finances 51% of Neinver & TH RE’s Nassica Purchase

20 December 2016 – Cuatro

Deutsche Asset Management (AM) has granted a loan amounting to €71.5 million to the joint venture between TH Real Estate and Neinver to finance its acquisition of the Nassica shopping and leisure centre in Madrid, whereby contributing 51% of the €140 million that was disbursed for the transaction.

Deutsche AM reported that the financing will be provided through its senior debt real estate fund.

At the beginning of November, TH Real Estate and Neinver completed the purchase of the Nassica shopping centre from the private equity firm KKR for €140 million.

At the beginning of 2015, Neinver and TH Real Estate signed a strategic alliance to create a leading platform of outlet centres in Europe, in which they each hold a 50% stake and through which they own several assets, in addition to the complex located in Getafe.

Constructed in 2002 and located in Getafe, in the south of Madrid, Nassica has a surface area of 53,000 m2, which is divided into 44 spaces for retail, restaurants and leisure.

The property, which was completely renovated in 2015, has a high occupancy rate and a large variety of retail outlets, including a Carrefour, MediaMarkt and Toys R Us, as well as other domestic and international brands.

The shopping centre attracts 6.4 million visitors per year and is easy to access given its strategic location close to two major highways. Moreover, it is next to The Style Outlets, an important shopping centre, which is managed by Neinver. (…).

Recently, Deutsche’s real estate debt investment division completed the €57 million refinancing of a portfolio of investments in Mayfair, London, as well as a new €750 million mandate for a German institutional client.

Deutsche AM’s real estate debt business has a total volume of €2,000 million (as at 7 November 2016).

Original story: Cuatro

Translation: Carmel Drake

Deloitte: 29 Shopping Centres Worth €1,531M Are Up For Sale

13 December 2016 – Expansión

Between January and October, investors spent €3,028 million buying shopping centres in Spain. That is a historical figure, which pulverises the volume registered in previous years. For example: in 2015, a record year in terms of real estate investment, investors spent 60% less on shopping centres than they did during the first ten months of 2016.

And this strong performance in the retail investment market looks set to continue, given that 29 more properties, with a combined value of €1,531 million, are expected to be sold during the final stretch of the year, according to Deloitte. (…) Of those, four have already changed hands, specifically, the outlet centres located in San Sebastián de los Reyes, Las Rozas and Getafe, which the joint venture owned by Nienver and Tiaa purchased on 23 November, as part of a wider European portfolio that also included three other centres in Italy and Poland, worth €700 million in total. Moreover, the same partnership completed the acquisition of the Nassica shopping centre in Getafe on the same day.

And these are not the only shopping centres that will be changing hands over the next few months, given that other new assets are expected to come onto the market next year, including the Madrid Xanadú shopping centre in Arroyomolinos.

In total, forecasts indicate that transactions amounting to almost €2,000 million (specifically, €1,932 million) will be closed in 2017, with another €604 million worth of shopping centres expected to be sold in 2018, according to sources at the professional services firm.

Gains

Most of the shopping centres that will have new owners over the next 18 months belong to overseas funds that bought these assets before the recovery of the sector, and which now have the opportunity to unwind their investments with significant gains just a few years after they bought them. “The decrease in the risk premium and the recovery in consumption are some of the reasons behind the 16% appreciation in this type of asset over the last 12 months”, said Javier García-Mateo, Financial Advisory Partner at Deloitte.

In fact, we have already seen operations of this kind in 2016, such as the sale of the Gran Vía de Vigo shopping centre, which the fund Oaktree sold in the summer to the Socimi Lar España for €145 million. The US fund had acquired the centre two years earlier for €115 million. (…). Meanwhile, Northwood sold Diagonal Mar for €495 million after buying it two years ago for around €150 million.

“Above all, the buyers of the shopping centres that will come up for sale in the short term will be core and core plus funds, which will take over from the more opportunist (distress) investors, which made their purchases during the previous period”, said García-Mateo. In this way, transactions amounting to €4,067 million are expected to be closed over the next two years; more than €1,200 million will be invested by institutional funds, insurance companies, and more risk-averse investors, followed by core plus investors, which will account for almost 40% of the total investment volume, compared with €108 million that opportunist funds are expected to invest in shopping centres, according to Deloitte.

Financing

Along with the improvement in the Spanish economy, another question that will help this investment volume will be the better access to financing for this kind of operation.

In this sense, more than 55% of the €4,067 million that is expected to be invested in shopping centres between now and 2018 will benefit from financing, for more than 50% of the total asset value, compared with 16% that will not be financed by any kind of loan.

Original story: Expansión (by Rocío Ruiz)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Airbus Unveils Plans For Its New Offices In Getafe

10 November 2016 – Expansión

The Airbus group has decided to unify its offices in Madrid into one large site. (…).

The new facilities will be located on land that Airbus owns alongside its factory in Getafe. Lamela, the architecture firm that won the tender to design the site, is drawing up plans for the complex, which will have a total surface area of 54,000 m2 and which will house 1,600 staff.

According to sources at the architecture studio, the new campus will include three new spaces: two modules for the central offices, buildings for IM (Information Management) and CPD (Data Processing Centre), a canteen, with capacity for 3,000 people, and an identification centre.

According to the proposed timetable, the plans will be ready during the first quarter of 2017 and construction work will begin soon after that, with the likely completion date at the end of 2018. (…).

Original story: Expansión (by R. Arroyo and R. Ruiz)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Neinver & TH Real Estate Buy Nassica Shopping Centre For €140M

8 November 2016 – Real Estate Press

TH Real Estate and Neinver have completed the purchase of the Nassica shopping centre from the private equity firm KKR for €140 million.

At the beginning of 2015, Neinver and TH Real Estate signed a strategic alliance to create a leading platform for outlet centres in Europe. Each company owns a 50% stake in the joint venture, which owns several assets in a portfolio that now also includes the complex located in Getafe (Madrid).

Nassica has a gross leasable area (GLA) of 50,200 m2 and 4,000 parking spaces. The centre receives twelve million visitors per year.

In this way, the joint venture between TH Real Estate and Neinver have acquired the complex in Getafe just two years after KKR purchased it for €100 million.

With operations in France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Spain, The Netherlands and the Czech Republic, Neinver has consolidated its position in the European retail sector and now manages 24 centres, covering a GLA of 593,000 m2, housing almost 2,000 stores and more than 1,000 exclusive national and international brands.

Original story: Real Estate Press

Translation: Carmel Drake

KKR & Neinver Finalise Sale Of Nassica Shopping Centre

8 August 2016 – Expansión

The US investment firm KKR and the real estate company Neinver are finalising the sale of the Nassica shopping centre, located in the Madrilenian town of Getafe, to TIAA Henderson Real Estate.

The price of the transaction, advised by the real estate consultancy Knight Frank, is expected to exceed €100 million.

The transaction is expected to be completed soon, after the due diligence process has been completed. TIAA Henderson also currently owns another Madrilenian shopping centre, Isla Azul.

Nassica, which receives more than 12 million visitors per year, has a gross leasable area (GLA) of 50,200 sqm and 4,000 parking spaces.

The centre includes a 10,700 sqm Carrefour hypermarket. The retail offering is completed by brands such as Conforama, Décimas, Merkal, Toys ‘R’ Us, Worten and Kiwoko. In addition, the site has a The Style Outlets centre with a surface area of almost 21,000 sqm.

In addition, Nassica has a 20-screen cinema, with more than 5,000 seats, as well as an area dedicated to leisure with more than 25 restaurants.

KKR, which created a joint venture with the real estate company Neinver in 2014 to acquire Nassica, will sell the property just two years after it bought it. At the time, the investment fund and the Spanish operator bought the Nassica and Vista Alegre shopping centres, both from the Pillar Retail European Fund, whose majority shareholder is British Land, for around €90 million.

Constructed by Neinver in 2002, the Nassica shopping and leisure centre underwent a makeover in 2015 to renovate and modernise its facilities. The renovation included both the decor of the property as well as changes to the shopping centre’s common areas. In this way, for example, the paving and façade were refurbished and new recreation areas and green spaces were created, and the terraces were made more accessible.

Original story: Expansión (by Rebeca Arroyo)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Rockspring Buys Montepino Casablanca Logistics Park

17 March 2016 – Mis Naves

Inversiones Montepino and Rockspring have reached an agreement for the sale and purchase of the new Montepino Casablanca logistics park, in a deal advised by ProEquity.

On Friday 11 March 2016, the sale agreement was signed for the new logistics park located in the town of Torrejón de Ardoz. Construction of the site has just been completed. The transaction, advised by the consultancy ProEquity, involves the acquisition, by one of Rockspring’s funds, of a site with a total constructed surface are of almost 50,000m2.

The asset, constructed on a site measuring 85,000 m2 and spread across two buildings, measuring 27,000 m2 and 21,000 m2, respectively, has been built to the highest quality standards and has received the LEED Green Silver Certificate, which will have a major impact in areas such as energy consumption efficiency and improving the quality of the internal environment.

This deal involves the first development of its kind in Madrid since 2007 and forms part of Rockspring’s commitment to become one of the major players in the logistics real estate sector, alongside the launch of the new 60,000 m2 project in Puerta Mayor “Los Gavilanes” in Getafe, which has just been put on the market.

Original story: Mis Naves

Translation: Carmel Drake

GreenOak Buys 5 Logistics Assets In Madrid For €75M

24 June 2015 – Expansión

GreenOak hereby completes its second major deal in Spain. Over the last few months, the US fund has closed the purchased of five logistics assets in the Community of Madrid, which cover a surface area of 200,000 m2 (100,000 m2 of facilities and 100,000 m2 of land).

Based on the prices of these assets in the market, GreenOak must have paid between €60 million and €75 million for the five assets, according to various real estate sources.

The US fund is planning to continue its growth in this segment and has already agreed to purchase another three logistics assets, also in the Community of Madrid, which will add a further 100,000 m2 to GreenOak’s portfolio in Spain.

The fund plans to continue acquiring assets – in Barcelona, Zaragoza and Valencia as well – to reach (a surface area of) half a million square metres over the next 12 months.

All of the assets purchased by GreenOak are located in Getafe and in the Corredor del Henares and are currently leased out to companies such as Seur, Montfrisa and TransXtar. The vendors have been banks, other funds and family-owned companies.

“Logistics is an asset class where scale and experience make a difference. We are focusing on Spain, where we have the strongest interest”, says John Carrafiell, founding partner at GreenOak.

“Given our resources to undertake investments in the sector, our team on the ground and our real estate due diligence skills, GreenOak can close deals quickly, with investments of between €5 million and €100 million”, says Carrafiell.

The chief executive at GreenOak is leading the fund’s strategy in Spain first hand. Carrafiell is regarded as one of the gurus of global real estate investment. He used to lead Morgan Stanley’s business in this segment and in 2004 he closed one of the largest deals ever in the UK, the purchase of Canary Wharf.

Fund history

After leaving Morgan Stanley, Carrafiell created GreenOak in 2010. Since then, the fund has raised assets under management amounting to €4,751 million and has opened offices in USA, London, Seoul, Munich, Tokyo and Madrid.

GreenOak signed its first major purchase in Spain last year, with the acquisition of seven shopping centres from the Dutch group Vastned Retail for €160 million.

Moreover, in recent months, GreenOak has tried to enter the office market. It was in the running for the purchase of Castellana, 77, which was eventually sold to GMP; and Castellana, 89, which was acquired by Corporación Financiera Alba, owned by the March family. The fund expects to close the purchase of offices and shopping centres within the next few weeks.

 Original story: Expansión (by Jorge Zuloaga)

Translation: Carmel Drake