Tag: puerto venecia

CBRE: Real Estate in Sevilla Attracts Funding from Overseas Investors

15 December 2018 – ABC

The city of Sevilla and its metropolitan area are now on the international real estate map and proof of that is that the major overseas funds are putting up a lot of the capital being absorbed by the new commercial, hotel and logistics projects in the city, “whereby taking over from the real estate firms of yesteryear”. That is one of the conclusions of a report compiled by the consultancy firm CBRE, which highlights that the return on investment has been felt most intensely in the shopping centre sector.

“With almost 300,000 m2 of future supply planned, Sevilla is the province in Spain that will grow by almost the most over the next few years in terms of gross leasable area – exceeded only by Madrid”, it said. “This will be a key sector this year and next for the Sevillan real estate market”, said Rosa Madrid, Director of CBRE in Andalucía. The first newsworthy event was the entry into operation of Torre Sevilla, “an open and mixed shopping centre, with a hotel and offices, which we have not seen here before and which is regenerating the area”, she highlighted. The office market “has absorbed without great problems” the 18,000 m2 that Torre Sevilla brought to the market “whereby disproving those who predicted a new crisis in this segment”, she said.

Offices

In the office segment, the highest rents are achieved in the most modern buildings of Nervión (a district in Sevilla), with rents of around €12-13/m2/month. In this area, some exclusive office buildings that were left vacant following the departure of the Junta de Andalucía to Santa Justa were occupied within 18 months. In La Cartuja, office rents are somewhat lower, around €9-11/m2/month, according to the report.

But, “the turning point” in the shopping centre sector is going to be seen Sevilla with Project Lagoh, promoted by the Socimi Lar España in the Palmas Altas area, to the south of the capital, and currently under construction. “Finally, the new era of shopping centres is going to arrive in Sevilla. Until now, we have only had shopping centres from the 1990s and none from the 21st century, like Xanadú in Madrid or Puerto Venecia in Zaragoza”, said Rosa Madrid.

Hotel investment

The hotel market has been also reactivated as demonstrated by the major operations closed in recent years. “In addition to the modern Eurostars Torre Sevilla, since 2015, the flow of properties acquired to transform them into accommodation has been continuous”, she highlighted. The most noteworthy operations include the purchase by the French real estate company Bouygues of the former headquarters of Abengoa, to renovate it and transform it into a 5-star hotel, the purchase of Hotel Macarena and the acquisition of the Generali building in Plaza Nueva by the British fund Shaftesbury.

Logistics market

Demand for logistics warehouses has also been increasing, at the same time as the major e-commerce operators have increased their logistics network in the south of the peninsula, such as the case of Amazon and Inditex, which have opened platforms in Sevilla. “That sector is here to stay. And operators are not only looking for large spaces far away from the cities measuring between 30,000 m2 and 100,000 m2, they are also looking for small spaces inside the SE30 to serve the last-mile market and demand for immediate distribution”, explained the regional director of CBRE.

Student halls

Investors specialising in alternative sectors, such as student halls of residence, are also placing their focus on Sevilla, a city that is home to 16% of all of Spain’s university students (…).

Original story: ABC (by E. Freire)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Eurofund Gets Green Light for its Retail Macro-Project in Lleida

8 October 2018 – Eje Prime

Eurofund Group has been given the green light for its macro-project in Lleida. Last Friday, the plenary of the Town Hall of Lleida capital approved the commercial development of the Torre Salses project, a retail park complex with a surface area of 56,000 m2. The construction work is expected to begin in the autumn of 2019, according to comments from sources close to the operation speaking to Eje Prime.

The plots on which Torres Salses is going to be built are located between the Magraners and La Bordeta neighbourhoods and “will involve their integration with the city centre”, explained the spokeswoman for the municipal government, Montse Mínguez, recently.

After passing the Town Hall’s filter, Eurofund is now only awaiting the commercial licence to be able to start work on the development of the land. On 21 September, the Informative Committee for Management and Development Policies in the City and Sustainability for the Town Hall of Lleida reported favourably regarding the urban planning process for Torre Salses. It also endorsed both the execution of the widening and extension of the Víctor Torres road and the modification of the urban development order for SUR 42.

The Town Hall approved those files on the understanding that, amongst other aspects, the construction of the complex would strengthen interest in the area for the development of large areas of amenities in the neighbourhoods of La Bordeta and Magraners. Moreover, Eurofund will bear some of the costs of the work to build the roads to access the future retail park complex.

Similarly, the Town Hall trusts that the commercial macro-project will facilitate the development of residential projects, in particular, those dedicated to social housing units. According to the Town Hall of Lleida, Torre Salses will have an economic impact of €362 million on the city.

Owner of Puerto Venecia and Dolce Vita 

Eurofund currently owns more than €3.5 billion in commercial assets, including developed centres and those under construction. The fund manager was founded in 1994 and its first major development was Parc Vallès in Terrassa (Barcelona).

With the new upward economic cycle, the company led by Ian Sandford (pictured above) reactivated its investment in the commercial real estate market with Puerto Venecia, a mega shopping centre spanning 206,000 m2 inaugurated in Zaragoza in 2012.

Original story: Eje Prime (by J. Iquierdo & P. Riaño)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Hermes Acquires 3,345 m2 in Puerto Venecia & Prepares its Third Fund

10 July 2018 – Eje Prime

Hermes Properties is adding a new asset to its portfolio. The investment vehicle, which specialises in commercial projects, has purchased 3,345 m2 of the Puerto Venecia shopping centre, owned by Intu, which it will lease to the hamburger chain Carl’s Jr and to the service station chain Gasexpress.

With this purchase, Hermes has completed a €14 million investment across three operations, in the El Puente shopping centre in Rojales (Alicante); in commercial plots in Isla Azul, in Madrid; and this latest deal in Puerto Venecia, in Zaragoza.

The manager’s purchase in Madrid, of plots spanning a surface area of 4,000 m2, which used to be owned by Sareb, involved the disbursement of €4 million. The operations have been undertaken through Hermes’ second investment vehicle, Hermes II. The manager, owned by Delta Asesores and the consultancy firm InmoKing Real Estate, is now preparing a new program of investments to generate the vehicle Hermes III.

Original story: Eje Prime

Translation: Carmel Drake

Intu Moves into New HQ in Madrid on Paseo de la Castellana

19 April 2018 – El Economista

The British giant Intu, owner of several shopping centres in Spain, including Xanadú in Madrid and Puerto Venecia in Zaragoza, is continuing to grow in our country with a new headquarters in the capital. The company, which until now had its offices in the Chamberí neighbourhood, has moved to a small palace on Paseo de la Castellana.

With this operation, which has been advised by the real estate consultancy firm Savills Aguirre Newman, the firm is expanding its office space and positioning itself in a strategic enclave in the city. Specifically, Intu is going to move to number 64 Paseo de la Castellana, into the iconic Palacete Moreno Benítez, which spans 1,350 m2, spread over five floors.

The building, constructed in 1904 by the architect Joaquín Saldaña, was inhabited for many years by the aristocracy of the time and is one of the few small palaces that has managed to survive of the 70 that used to dominate this major Madrilenian thoroughfare.

Its current owner, which will become Intu’s landlord in Madrid by virtue of this contract, is the real estate company Caboel, in which the Carbó, Bonet and Elías families hold stakes, all former owners of the Caprabo distribution group.

Caboel acquired the property in 2015 by making the best offer – €13.5 million – in a public auction organised by the State Company for the Management of Real Estate Assets (Segipsa). Until then, the building had been owned by the General State Administration, which acquired it in 1982.

The company has carried out a project to refurbish the building to subsequently obtain returns by leasing it out.

Caboel owns 30,000 m2 of office space in Madrid, Barcelona, Lisbon and Porto, according to information provided on its website. The company’s portfolio comprises 150 assets, diversified across different sectors such as commercial, with retail premises and out-of-town shopping parks, as well as hotels and logistics assets.

Original story: El Economista (by Alba Brualla)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Intu’s New Strategy in Spain: to Change the Names of its Shopping Centres

16 May 2018 – Eje Prime

Intu is betting on branding to raise the profile of its name in Spain. The company, which has a vast presence in the United Kingdom, where it owns almost twenty shopping centres, is going to replicate its British strategy in Spain, by adding the word Intu to the name of its retail complexes. This week, the company announced that its shopping centre in Zaragoza, which has been called Puerto Venecia to date, is now going to be named Intu Puerto Venecia.

It was in 2014 when Intu reached an agreement with the fund Orion European Real Estate to acquire the Puerto Venecia complex, the largest shopping centre in Spain, for €451 million. The complex contains a retail park spanning 82,600 m2, which was inaugurated in 2008 and a leisure and fashion area measuring 130,000 m2, which opened in October 2012 (…).

Since the purchase by Intu, the British group has carried out a series of changes to the appearance and management of the shopping centre. But it has not been until now that the group has decided to complete the process by adding the word Intu to the name of the complex, whereby following in the footsteps of Intu Asturias.

Now, the next step will be for Intu to apply the same strategy to the Xanadú shopping centre. The British group completed the purchase of that shopping centre, located in Arroyomolinos (Madrid), from Ivanhoé Cambridge for more than €520 million in March last year. That acquisition was the largest operation since Deutsche Bank paid €495 million for Diagonal Mar.

In May of the same year, Intu created a joint venture with TH Real Estate to share the ownership of the Madrilenian shopping centre, transferring 50% of the complex to TH Real Estate for €264.4 million, half of the amount that it had paid for Xanadú.

That shopping centre, constructed in 2003, has a total surface area of 153,695 m2 spread over two storeys and with a total of 220 stores, making it one of the largest retail complexes in Madrid. Its tenants include Inditex, El Corte Inglés, Hipercor, Bricor, Decathlon, Primark and Apple. Xanadú Madrid receives almost 13 million visitors per year and generates sales of around €230 million.

Shopping centres on the rise in Spain

Intu’s commitment to Spain comes at a good time for this retail format in the country. Sales registered at these complexes rose by 3.5% in 2017, to exceed €43.5 billion.

Specifically, revenues in the sector amounted to €43.59 billion in 2017. The market share of shopping centres and retail parks rose to reach 17.9%. Last year, around 1,900 million visits were registered at these complexes.

Meanwhile, investment in the sector soared by 35% in 2017, to €2.7 billion. During the course of last year, 29 transactions were closed involving 36 assets, according to data from the Spanish Association of Shopping Centres and Retail Parks (AECC).

Original story: Eje Prime (by C. Pareja)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Hammerson Set to Buy Intu, Owner of Xanadú & Puerto Venecia

6 December 2017 – Expansión

The Boards of Directors of Hammerson and Intu Properties, two of Great Britain’s largest property developers, have reached an agreement regarding their merger, which will result in the creation of a group with assets worth GBP 21 billion (€23.7 billion, in euros), mostly comprising shopping centres in the United Kingdom, France and Spain. The operation will be instrumented through a public takeover bid (OPA) of Hammerson’s shares for Intu’s, valuing the share capital of that company at GBP 3.4 billion (€3.85 billion). Intu’s shareholders will receive 0.475 newly issued Hammerson shares for each current share they own.

If the deal goes ahead, it will have a significant effect on the Spanish market, as it would see a change in the owner of the country’s three largest shopping centres. Intu controls 50% of Xanadú (Madrid), Puerto Venecia (Zaragoza) and Parque Principado (Asturias). Funds from Canada and the USA are the company’s partners in those centres. Moreover, Intu has plans underway to develop other leisure and shopping complexes in Málaga, Valencia and Vigo, for a combined investment of more than €1 billion.

Hammerson, meanwhile, holds stakes in Value Retail and Via Outlets, which operate luxury brand outlet centres such as Las Rozas Village (Madrid), La Roca (Barcelona), Mallorca Fashion and Sevilla Fashion.

According to a statement from Hammerson issued today when it announced the purchase “the incorporation of Intu’s portfolio in Spain fits with our strategy of placing our focus on consumer growth markets as it involves adding three of the country’s largest shopping centres. It will also allow our commercial partners to have exposure to a new European market”.

This British company is committed to developing Intu’s projects in Spain. It says that the group resulting from the merger “will be in the best position” to undertake those investments. Following the integration, the group plans to sell some of its centres in the United Kingdom for around GBP 2 billion, which will give it “the financial flexibility it needs to invest in more profitable opportunities in Spain and Ireland, as well as in the outlet centre segment”. The combined debt of the new Hammerson group will amount to GBP 8.2 billion.

The property developer hopes to generate annual savings of GBP 25 million as a result of joining forces with Intu.

Intu’s share price on the London Stock Exchange rose by 20% (after the deal was announced), taking the company’s market capitalisation to GBP 3.2 billion, whilst Hammerson’s share price fell by 2%, taking its market capitalisation to GBP 4.15 billion.

Analysts are interpreting the operation as a defensive move by the two companies to protect themselves from the possible impact of Brexit, which is slowing down consumption in the United Kingdom and which may harm the value of their shopping centres. “The merger represents a coalition of two weak businesses, which will result in an amalgam of assets without any great possibilities for generating incremental profits”, argues Mike Prew, from Jefferies. “The interesting areas of growth are Intu’s Spanish business and Hammerson’s outlet centres”.

The merger still needs to be approved by the shareholders of the two companies and by the British competition authorities, which means that it could take a year to complete. Peel Holding, the investment company owned by John Whittaker, which is Intu’s largest shareholder, has already agreed to approve the takeover. Following the operation, it will hold a 15% stake in the resulting group.

The banks Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan and Lazard have advised Hammerson. Meanwhile, Intu’s managers have engaged the services of Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Rothschild and UBS.

Original story: Expansión (by Roberto Casado)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Spain’s Shopping Centres Reinvent Themselves As Leisure Mega-Resorts

23 October 2017 – Expansión

Star asset / The boom in e-commerce and change in consumer habits are revolutionising the traditional concept of retail. Offering new experiences and turning their properties into iconic spaces are some of the maxims of the owners of shopping centres.

Much more than retail spaces. The new generation of shopping centres is evolving to incorporate a leisure concept for the whole family and to adapt to the demands of the millennials. Aquariums, artificial lakes, ski resorts, diving pools; everything fits into these new megaresorts designed for leisure, experiences and shopping.

“We have to implement new concepts, but without taking our eye off the ball in terms of the retail mix”, explain sources at Unibail-Rodamco, the largest listed commercial real estate company in Europe, which owns 13 centres in Spain, worth more than €3,500 million, and which plans to invest an additional €650 million in the country between now and 2024.

“We have introduced the DEX (Dining Experience), which aims to revolutionise restaurant spaces in shopping centres through a combination of architecture, design and leisure to offer a multi-sensorial experience”, explain the sources. They are adamant that “physical stores are not incompatible with e-commerce. In fact, we are seeing lots of the companies that originated in the digital environment now looking for physical points of sale. Amazon has opted to sell through physical stores with its acquisition of Whole Foods in the USA. We have also seen the same thing with Hawkers, the sunglasses brand, which recently opened its first physical store in Madrid”.

“Shopping centres are having to evolve to adapt themselves to the new needs and wants of customers, combining technology, multi-channels and experiences to reach more demanding end consumers”, explains Luis Lázaro, Head of the Shopping Centre division at Merlin Properties, which plans to invest €100 million over the next few years in both modernising the image of its centres as well as in updating its commercial offer.

José Manuel Llovet, Director of Retail at Lar – which owns 14 shopping centres in Spain – explains that the Socimi is working on improving the customer experience. “We are investing more than €60 million in Capex to adapt and modernise our centres, improve services and experiences, as well as implement the omnichannel strategy”.

Sources at Intu, owner of Puerto Venecia (Zaragoza), Intu Asturias (Asturias) and Xanadú (Madrid), which also has several important projects underway, say they use the shopping resort concept as the formula for attracting consumers, turning shopping centres into “tourist and leisure attractions”, and adopting a strategy of fewer operators with larger surface areas.

Meanwhile, Sociedad General Inmobiliaria de España (Lsgie) inaugurated Plaza Río 2 on Friday. One of the main features of that centre, located on the banks of the Manzanares River (Madrid) is its Mirador (lookout), which they define as “the best restaurant terrace in the capital” (…).

Carolina Ramos Alcobía, Director of the Shopping Centre Leasing department at Aguirre Newman, points out that Spain is promoting a model that moves away from the traditional shopping centre. “The trend is moving towards an aesthetics of open shopping centres, which are more like small towns or urban shopping centres; moreover, that concept is very highly favoured by the Spanish climate. The key is to get away from the stress associated with hectic, uncomfortable shopping centres” (…).

According to Ramos, “we are undoubtedly witnessing the largest transformation of shopping centres since they first opened in Spain, almost forty years ago. If they don’t spruce themselves up, they won’t survive” (…).

Investor appetite

In terms of investment (…), according to Javier García-Mateo, Real Estate Partner in Financial Advisory at Deloitte, “a voracious appetite exists for medium-sized shopping centres, which we have not seen for more than ten years”. According to data from Deloitte, so far this year, investment in shopping centres amounts to €2,300 million. In 2016, investors spent €3,769 million buying shopping centres in Spain, almost doubling the figure recorded in 2015 (…).

Original story: Expansión (by R. Arroyo and M. Anglés)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Orion Launches €1,500M Fund & Plans Its Return To Spain

3 May 2017 – El Economista

Orion Capital has raised €1,500 million for its fifth real estate fund, which is dedicated to purchasing assets across Europe. According to sources in the sector, the Dutch fund has placed its focus on Spain, where it plans to spend some of that money. “It has not set itself a fixed objective, but Spain is a country that is very attractive”, confirm the sources.

The fund used to own a significant portfolio of assets in Spain, nevertheless, between 2014 and 2015, it completed the divestment of the last properties that it owned and maintained only its stake in Sotogrande, which it owns jointly with Cerberus.

Now, Orion wants to restore its presence in the country and to that end, it is looking for high value-added operations, including renovations and new developments. According to the sources, the fund, founded by Aref H. Lahham, Van J. Stults and Bruce C. Bossom, also wants to increase its exposure to Spanish real estate in an indirect way by acquiring stakes in companies in the sector and by purchasing debt.

Orion’s interests span almost every segment of the market. In the case of offices, the fund will concentrate its efforts in Madrid and Barcelona, looking at both refurbishments and new developments. To acquire shopping centres, it will expand its geographical range and will analyse operations in smaller cities as well. In that case, the fund will only participate in a project under development if it is in an advanced stage, where no planning is required. “Everything should be ready to build”, explain the sources, given that the manager has a team of just three people in Spain. The hotel segment is also on its radar, as well as logistics, in which “it will probably operate by constructing new spaces”.

During its previous phase of intense activity in Spain, Orion starred in several major transactions, such as the purchase of the Plenilunio shopping centre (Madrid) in 2009 for €235 million, which it then sold in 2015 for €375 million. Similarly, it completed a high-profile divestment when it exited Puerto Venecia, in Zaragoza, by selling the largest shopping centre in Spain to Intu for €451 million. Orion hopes to start buying assets in Spain once again before the end of the year.

Original story: El Economista (by Alba Brualla)

Translation: Carmel Drake

TH Real Estate Negotiates With Intu To Buy 50% Of Xanadú

21 April 2017 – Expansión

Intu has found a partner for its mega-investment in the Madrilenian shopping centre Xanadú, which it purchased from Ivanhoé Cambridge in March for €530 million. Specifically, the British fund is holding advanced negotiations with TH Real Estate to transfer it 50% of the shopping centre.

According to sources in the market, TH Real Estate, which bid for the asset by itself in the tender, has engaged Cushman & Wakefield to advise it in this operation. The fund manager declined to make any comment about the deal.

The purchase of Xanadú by Intu was partially funded through a five-year loan from Santander, BBVA, Credit Agricole and CaixaBank, amounting to €263 million. Intu contributed the rest of the investment using its own funds.

The shopping centre, excluding the management company and the Snowzone, was valued in February this year at €526 million, which represents an initial net return of 4.4%.

The asset, located in the Madrilenian municipality of Arroyomolinos, sparked interest amongst several investors, although only Intu and TH Real Estate reached the final round, and the latter may now become an ally in the deal anyway.

The purchase of Xanadú represented the largest operation involving a shopping centre in the history of the market in Spain, ahead of the €495 million that Deutsche Bank paid for Diagonal Mar (in Barcelona) in August, the €451 million that Intu paid for Puerto Venecia (Zaragoza) and the €375 million that Klépierre paid for Plenilunio (Madrid).

Xanadú, constructed in 2003, is currently home to more than 220 establishments. It has a surface area of 153,000 m2 and 8,000 parking spaces. The shopping centre – one of the largest in Spain – receives almost 13 million visitors per year and generated sales of around €230 million last year.

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

Translation: Carmel Drake

Sareb Finalises Sale Of Parque Corredor To Redevco & Ares

6 April 2017 – El Confidencial

One of the most entangled real estate operations in recent times is about to see the light. Namely, the sale of the Parque Corredor shopping centre, a giant in the retail sector, with a surface area of 123,000 m2 and 180 stores, located in the Madrilenian town of Torrejón de Ardoz, which Sareb has been trying to sell for four years.

It is the commercial jewel in the crown of the entity chaired by Jaime Echegoyen. The bad bank is the main shareholder, with 40% of the share capital, which it inherited from Catalunya Caixa. But, until now, that stake had been insufficient to convince any buyer, given that it does not guarantee control over the centre. Nevertheless, Sareb has teamed up with Perella to sell their shares to Redevco and Area Group en bloc, a move that will allow the new owners to acquire almost 60% of the share capital. All of the parties have declined to make comments.

The operation has been on the cards for months and although it has not been completed yet, according to the sources consulted by El Confidencial, conversations are in an advanced stage and are likely to come to fruition. El Corte Inglés may play an important role in the outcome given that together with Alcampo, it owns another 25% of the centre’s share capital, and their stake could also end up forming part of the transaction.

Sareb is being advised in the operation by Knight Frank, Perella is being advised by Cushman & Wakefield, whilst Redevco and Ares are working with Deloitte.

Depending on the total percentage that ends up being acquired, the final amount of the operation could reach €120 million, whereby valuing the entire centre at around €200 million, an amount that would allow Parque Corredor to join the growing number of shopping centres whose sales have exceeded €100 million, such as Xanadú (€530 million), Diagonal Mar (€495 million), Puerto Venecia (€451 million), Plenilunio (€375 million), Gran Vía Vigo (€145 million), Nassica (€140 million) and L’Aljub and Alcalá Magna (both €100 million).

Shopping centre alliance

Redevco and Area Management decided to join forces a year and a half ago, when they created a joint venture, Redevco Iberian Ventures, endowed with €500 million of capital and with the aim of acquiring shopping centres in Spain and Portugal. The new company was constituted with six assets, contributed by the two shareholders, and the objective of closing several acquisitions. The first was completed last spring, when it purchased six shopping centres in Extremadura and Andalucia, with a combined surface area of 84,250 m2, from Bogaris for €95 million. (…).

With Parque Corredor, the joint venture is acquiring a great asset near to the Spanish capital, but it needs significant renovation work, and the associated investment is estimated to amount to around €15 million, according to real estate sources. (…).

The shopping centre receives 10 million visitors per year and its tenants include Primark, H&M, Kiabi, Alcampo, Toys “R” Us and Cinesa cinemas. (…).

Original story: El Confidencial (by R. Ugalde)

Translation: Carmel Drake