Tag: Villar Mir

Villar Mir Sells 49% Of Fifth Tower To Andrew Tan

27 March 2017 – Inmodiario

Making money to reduce OHL’s mounting debt is still imperative for Grupo Villar Mir. And it was in this context that the latest operation was signed between the holding company controlled by the 80-year old civil engineer and the real estate company Megaworld, owned by the Philippine businessman Andrew Tan. The businessman has become the new partner in the project to develop Caleido, the fifth tower in the Castellana complex. In 2015, the construction group sold Torre Espacio to Tan for €550 million.

The agreement will turn the Philippine businessman into one of Villar Mir’s partners, as owner of 49% of the company that is running the project, which includes the construction of a skyscraper measuring more than 180 m tall and an underground shopping area with a surface area of around 12,000 m2. Tan will spend around €150 million on the purchase. PwC has acted as legal advisors to Espacio during the operation and the law firm Pérez-Lorca has represented Megaworld.

In January, the Chairman of the Villar Mir group, Juan Miguel Villar Mir Fuentes, unveiled so-called project Caleido, together with the Mayor of Madrid, Manuela Carmena. This complex, in which around €300 million is expected to be invested, includes a high-rise building, which will house a university campus to be operated by Instituto de Empresa and a medical research centre to be managed by Grupo Quirón.

In addition, the plans include an underground shopping area, covering around 12,000 m2, a park measuring 33,000 m2 where concerts and other cultural activities will be held, and 2,000 parking spaces.

Villar Mir was awarded this plot of land in 2014 under a 75-year concession, after he agreed to pay the Town Hall of Madrid an annual fee of €4 million (after an initial four-year grace period). Initially, a conference centre was going to be constructed on the site. (…).

The future architectural complex, designed by the architectural studio Fenwick & Iribarren, in conjunction with the Serrano Suñer Arquitectos studio, will comprise two separate spaces: a 160 m tall building with 36 floors, and a four-storey base building measuring 20 m tall (…).

Original story: Inmodiario

Translation: Carmel Drake

50% Of Lagasca 99’s Luxury Homes Have Been Pre-Reserved

27 March 2017 – Expansión

A “unique” project, destined to become a “European and international architectural icon”. That is the ambitious challenge that the Socimi Lar España and the largest fund manager Pimco have set themselves in an unusual project for both partners, namely: the luxury residential building, Lagasca 99. Lar España and its largest shareholder purchased the company Juan Bravo 3 at the end of 2014. At the time, the company owned the plot of land at the address of its name, in the exclusive neighbourhood of Madrid.

The company had been created in December 2006 by the real estate company Eurosazor, controlled by the businessman Rafael Ortiz. Ortiz had wanted to construct the most exclusive development in the capital, inspired by the One Hyde skyscraper in London. Nevertheless, financial difficulties left Eurosazor and Juan Bravo 3 filing for bankruptcy and the project never got off the ground. Then, Lar and Pimco invested €120 million to acquire the plot of land (along with the loans linked to the company that owned that land) and, ten years later, and also with the support of the renowned architect Rafael de la Hoz, the development has now resumed with a novel concept.

The future property, which will have a constructed surface area of 26,203 m2, will contain 44 homes, compared with the 60 units that Eurosazor had planned, and the 55 that were initially proposed by the new owners. These homes, spread over nine floors plus penthouses, will be located at different heights, including duplexes with ceilings measuring more than five metres high and duplex penthouses measuring up to 700 m2, including terraces and private swimming pools.

The building, which will offer five different types of homes, will incorporate elements such as bevelled corners and shark fins on the windows, which will allow natural light to enter the homes whilst at the same time ensuring the privacy of residents. Each home will have a minimum surface area of 330 m2 and will be sold for around €12,00/m2, and up to €14,000/m2 for the most exclusive units, say sources in the sector. In addition, each property will include two or three parking spaces – Colliers International will be responsible for marketing the properties.

The buyers of these exclusive homes (pre-reservations already exist for 50%) will have access to a gym and indoor swimming pool, as well as a wellness centre and a rooftop garden with an outdoor pool and landscaped roof. The development is expected to be ready by the beginning of 2018.

Lagasca 99 will compete against homes in the Canalejas complex to become the most luxurious development in Madrid. Located next to Puerta del Sol, the project run by Villar Mir (which Mark Scheinberg has just acquired a stake in) will build around twenty luxury apartments. Their residents will have access to the services of the five-star hotel in the same building, which will be operated by the Four Seasons chain.

Original story: Expansión (by Rocío Ruiz)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Torre Caleido: Villar Mir Unveils Plans For 5th Tower

11 January 2017 – El País

Yesterday, the President of Inmobiliaria Espacio, Juan Villar Mir, presented the plans for the fifth tower on the Paseo de la Castellana in Madrid, which will house the first high rise campus in the city and which will have 36 floors. He did so at an ceremony attended by the mayoress of Madrid, Manuela Carmena (Ahora Madrid) and the delegate for Sustainable Urban Development, José Manuel Calvo. The new skyscraper, designed by the studio Fenwick Iribarren y Serrano-Suñer Arquitectura, will be constructed in Madrid next to the complex known as the Cuatro Torres and will house the new headquarters of the IE University business school.

Construction of the fifth tower, which has been named Caleido, will cost €84 million. The building, which will be constructed at Paseo de la Castellana 259, will house the Instituto de Empresa (IE)’s university campus, a Quirón group medical clinic specialising in preventative medicine and sport, a shopping area and green spaces. The project, presented yesterday on the 42nd floor on the adjoining building Torre Espacio, will create 1,559 jobs during the construction phase and another 3,992 jobs once it is fully operational, according to the developer. It will be the shortest tower in the complex, at just 181m tall.

(…). The IE will occupy a surface area of 50,000 m2, with capacity for up to 6,000 students. By virtue of the lease contract that it has signed, the business school will occupy the property from 2019 onwards for a period of twenty years, extendable for another 55 years.

The total investment, including building costs, urbanisation of the plot allocated to green space, taxes and fees, will exceed €300 million. (…). The project will allow pedestrian access between the Castellana and the Monforte de Lemos thoroughfare, Parque Norte and Parque de los Pinos.

Villar Mir acquired the right to construct this skyscraper in April 2015 as the result of a public tender promoted by the Town Hall of Madrid. According to the terms set out by the Town Hall, most of the property must be used for healthcare or educational purposes, given that the plot must have a social purpose. Operation of the plot, which is owned by the Town Hall, has been granted to the company Torre Vida S.A.U. for 75 years, in exchange for an annual fee of €4 million, the highest offer of the four companies that competed in the public tender.

The Town Hall will assess, in coordination with the EMT and the Regional Transport Consortium, the requirement to reinforce and improve the transport infrastructure that supports the area, given the forecast increase in activity in the area as a result of the new building. (…).

Original story: El País (by Pelayo Escandón)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Villar Mir Engages Colliers To Accelerate Partial Sale Of Canalejas

26 September 2016 – Expansión

Grupo Villar Mir, the controlling shareholder of OHL, is making progress with its aggressive divestment plan, through which it aims to reduce its own level of indebtedness, as well as that of the construction company, and solve the financial problems that it finds itself immersed in. To this end, the industrial holding company has accelerated the search process to identify an investor willing to buy some of the complex of Canalejas buildings in Madrid.

Specifically, the Villar Mir group, which controls the project through a holding company (75%) and OHL (25%) has engaged the real estate consultancy Colliers to analyse the sale of a minority stake in the Canalejas complex, the real estate project that it is currently developing in the centre of Madrid.

The aim is to analyse the proposals that various investment groups have submitted to the owner of OHL, to participate in the project, which is expected to require an investment of €500 million. “This analysis phase will be completed in October and only then will we be able to take a decision regarding the possible partial divestment, whilst retaining control over and our commitment to the project”, said sources at the company.

According to El Confidencial, a number of possible interested parties are presenting themselves as contenders, including the international funds TH Real Estate and Lone Star.

In any case, Villar Mir will retain a majority stake in the project, given that its intention is to sell a stake of between 30% and 49%.

At the beginning of 2013, Villar Mir purchased seven buildings from Banco Santander, located between Calles de Alcalá, Sevilla and Plaza de Canalejas, for €215 million. The complex will house a luxury hotel managed by the Four Seasons chain, around 20 homes associated with the hotel, a shopping centre covering 15,000 sqm and a 500-space car park.

Initially, Villar Mir hoped to open the complex at the end of 2016, but problems with the Town Hall of Madrid relating to the renovation work delayed the project and it is now not expected to open until 2018. The construction company has launched a comprehensive divestment plan. Its portfolio of assets available for sale include 7% of Abertis, the industrial division, and the Mayacobá Mexican hotels. (…).

Original story: Expansión (by C. Morán and R. Ruiz)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Villar Mir Sells Another 5% Stake In Colonial For €114M

10 June 2016 – Expansión

Grupo Villar Mir has sold off another 5% stake in Colonial for €114 million. Together with that stake, another 1.23% of the shares, which had been owned by the President of OHL and which are currently held by Société Général, have also been placed on the stock market.

Following this operation, the company owned by Juan Miguel Villar Mir has lost its status as the majority shareholder of Colonial; Qatar Investment Authority takes over that mantle, with its 13.13% stake.

It is the second time that Villar Mir has decided to sell shares in Colonial in less than a year, after it sold a stake representing 10% of the share capital, worth €178 million, in September last year.

Whilst that divestment was undertaken in order to finance OHL’s capital increase; this time around, the objective is to reduce the gearing ratio of Grupo Villar Mir, given the current climate of volatility on the stock markets, said sources close to the company yesterday. On the other hand, with this sale, the group will generate significant capital gains.

Willingness to continue as a shareholder

The same sources said that Grupo Villar Mir continues to be “very satisfied” with its shareholding in Colonial – it still has a great deal of confidence in the company’s future and does not expect to sell any more of its shares in the group in the coming months.

In May 2014, Villar Mir participated in Colonial’s capital increase, subscribing in full to the amount that corresponded to it on the basis of its shareholding in the company. In order to finance that operation, Grupo Villar Mir negotiated a financing contract with Deutsche Bank amounting to €300 million. The contract was divided into two tranches. The first, amounting to €100 million, had to be repaid within a period of less than a year, whilst the second, amounting to €200 million has to be repaid within a period of five years.

Last September, Villar Mir also sold a 2.9% stake in Abertis, which, like in the case of this sale of its shares in Colonial, it justified by the need to finance OHL’s capital increase. The businessman’s stake in Abertis was reduced to 16%.

The Catalan real estate company Colonial earned €11 million during the three months to March 2016, which represents a 131% increase compared to the same period last year, when its profits amounted to €5 million. Last May, Colonial announced that it was going to carry out a non-monetary capital increase, amounting to €265 million, so as to continue to acquire office buildings. In parallel to this operation, the group is preparing to make investments worth €400 million. Colonial’s shares closed trading yesterday at €0.709 per share, having increased by 1.14%.

Original story: Expansión (by M. Anglés and C. Morán)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Qatari Sovereign Fund To Double Its Stake In Colonial

2 March 2016 – Expansión

Under the agreement between Colonial and the Qatari sovereign fund, the Spanish real estate company will take ownership of the majority of the 22.2% stake that Qatar Investment holds in its French subsidiary SFL (Société Foncière Lyonnaise) and in exchange the Qatari fund will increase its stake in Colonial, as much as possible (without exceeding the 30% threshold), from its current shareholding of 13%, to become the largest shareholder.

As a result of this operation, Colonial will increase its market capitalisation from €1,993 million to around €2,500 million and will grow in size as a boost to its bid to compete against the large European real estate groups. Its share price rose by 4.17% on the stock exchange yesterday to €0.625.

Sources close to the company said yesterday that the main aim of this move by the group led by Juan José Brugera (pictured above) is to increase its volume. (…).

Meanwhile, the aim of Qatar Investment is also clear: the sovereign fund is looking for liquidity in its European investments so that it can sell whenever it needs to. Its 22% stake in SFL (held through Qatar Holding and Dic Holding) is much more difficult to transfer than the stake that it will hold in Colonial, given that only 6.3% of the French company’s shares are free float compared with 59% of Colonial’s. (…).

The share exchange agreed between Colonial and the Qatari sovereign fund now depends on approval from the real estate company’s shareholders and also on the French tax authorities looking favourably on Colonial controlling between 70% and 75% of SFL (which will vary depending on the stake that Qatar ends up acquiring in Colonial, without exceeding the 30% threshold). The French company operates under a SIIC structure, equivalent to the Spanish Socimi, and it is critical that it continues to do so.

As a result of this operation, Qatar, which now holds a 13% stake, will become the largest shareholder in Colonial, a position held until now by Villar Mir, with his 14.5% stake. That group sold some of its shares in 2015 to finance the expansion of OHL. The businessman and the other shareholders will see their shareholdings diluted.

Original story: Expansión (by Marisa Anglés)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Starwood Will Open ‘W Madrid’ In 2018

20 January 2016 – Cinco Días

Starwood’s W brand will soon arrive in Madrid. Yesterday, the hotel chain announced that it will open the doors of a new hotel in the capital in 2018, in a property that is across the road from the Four Seasons hotel, which will itself open in the Canalejas complex currently being developed by Villar Mir. The arrival of the W brand represents another boost for the city’s luxury hotel market…and for Spain, which will thus become the only country in Europe to have two hotels operating under the brand.

“The opening of a second W hotel in Spain demonstrates the significant demand for this innovative lifestyle brand in such an important tourist market”, said Michael Wale, President of Starwood Hotels & Resorts for Europe, Africa and the Middle East, in a statement.

The future hotel will be located in the former Hotel Asturias, at numbers 9 and 11 on Carrera de San Jerónimo, which used to be operated by the company Hispano Hotelera, until September 2014. The two buildings that comprised the hotel, which used to be owned by the Salazar family, the former owners of SOS, were then sold to Platinum Estates, the investor vehicle of the Indian textile businessman Harry Mohinani, for more than €30 million. However, the properties currently belong to Merryland Inversiones, a company created in June 2014, which last year completed a €3.45 million capital increase and which is controlled, in turn, by Multiway Investment Limited Hong Kong.

“We think that the W brand fits perfectly with this historic property and we look forward to the emergence of W Madrid as one of the most sought-after and admired hotels in Spain”, said Harry Mohinani, the CEO of Merryland Inversiones.

Initially, the idea was to convert these buildings into luxury apartments, but in the end, the owners opted for a luxury hotel. The Starwood chain has been chosen to take over the new facility and it will represent the W brand’s first foray into the capital, since to date in Spain, its only presence is in Barcelona.

The new hotel will have 141 rooms, of which 21 will be suites. The future W Madrid, which will join the portfolio of 46 hotels that are already in operation around the world, will also have a rooftop terrace and two meeting rooms. The refurbishment of the property will be coordinated by the company Hospitality Solutions, which is headquartered in Hong Kong; the architectural firm Rockwell Group will also be involved – it has offices in Madrid and participated in the renovation of some parts of the Westin Palace, the only hotel that Starwood currently operates in the city. (…).

Original story: Cinco Días (by Laura Salces Acebes)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Villar Mir Sells Torre Espacio To Grupo Emperador For €558M

30 November 2015 – Expansión

Villar Mir has found a buyer for its Madrilenian skyscraper Torre Espacio. The group led by Juan Miguel Villar Mir has signed an agreement with the Philippine group Emperador for the sale of its 236m-tall office building, located in the Cuatro Torres Business Area in Madrid.

Emperador, the largest spirits company in the Philippines (it holds agreements with the Andalucían group González Byass) will pay €558 million for the property (around €9,200/m2), somewhat below the €600 million sales price that the seller was hoping to secure.

Inaugurated in 2007, Torre Espacio contains 60,000 m2 of office space, spread over 57 floors. It houses the offices of British American Tobacco and Red Bull, as well as the embassies of Australia, Canada, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Its occupancy rate is 85%.

The building’s main tenant is the Villar Mir group itself and its subsidiaries, which occupy 55.1% of the property. According to the President, Juan Miguel Villar Mir, the construction company and the other subsidiaries, such as Fertiberia and Ferroatlántica, will continue to have their headquarters in the Madrilenian skyscraper.

In fact, to make the purchase more attractive, the owner of OHL offered to remain as a tenant in order to guarantee rental income of €34/m2/month, according to real estate sources.

Emperador has succeeded in taking ownership of Torre Espacio despite being a very late joiner to the process, which was launched in June, when Villar Mir engaged the consultancy firm Aguirre Newman. In recent few weeks, the best positioned candidate has been the real estate fund Invesco. The real estate company Colonial had also initiated a due diligence process for the building, according to sources close to the operation. Other investors studying the purchase of Torre Espacio included Corporación Financiera Alba – owned by the March family – , the German fund Deka and Pontegadea – the real estate company owned by Amancio Ortega.

The Philippine group Emperador forms part of the Alliance Global business conglomerate led by Andrew L. Tan, who also owns real estate businesses through his company Megaworld. With this purchase, Emperador joins the huge list of investors that have purchased real estate assets in Spain in 2015.

Funding for OHL

With the transfer of Torre Espacio, Villar Mir will generate significant income, having reduced its stake in the listed companies Abertis and Colonial to cover its part of the €1,000 million capital increase in its construction company OHL. Villar Mir invested €400 million in the construction of the building, including the purchase of the land.

However, the businessman is not abandoning his real estate investments at the Cuatro Torres complex; he has been working on the construction of a fifth tower on an adjacent site for several months. (…).

The Villar Mir group is also working on the Canalejas complex, in the centre of Madrid, where it plans to invest €500 million.

Original story: Expansión (by R. Ruiz and C. Morán)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Caja Madrid’s Former HQ Is Up For Sale

5 November 2015 – Cinco Días

The former headquarters of the Caja Madrid is up for sale. La Fundación Montemadrid has engaged Irea to search for a buyer for the historical building, located a short distance from the Puerta del Sol in Madrid.

La Fundación Montemadrid, formerly known as ‘Fundación Obra Social y Monte de Piedad de Madrid’, plans to sell the whole property, excluding the premises where Monte de Piedad undertakes its activity, which will be made independent from the rest of the building. In total, the property has a surface area of 25,000 m2, which maybe used as a hotel, retail or office space.

Sources in the market consider that it is likely that the building will be converted into a “luxury five-star” hotel, which may also include some retail space.

If the building is converted into a hotel, then it would be highly coveted by international operators, at a time when Spain is under the spotlight thanks to the decision by Four Seasons to operate the hotel in the Canalejas Complex, and the purchase of the Ritz by Mandarin and Olayan. Meanwhile, in the Plaza Mayor, the Portuguese group Pestana is planning to open a five-star hotel in the Casa de la Carnicería.

Domestic and international investors, both hotel chains and investment funds have already expressed their interest in the property, which could represent the gateway into Madrid for franchises such as Hyatt, Kempinski, Hilton, W and Shangri-La. The future hotel would have around 200 rooms, as well as terrace space measuring 3,000 m2, one of which would be on the roof, with panoramic views of the city. The price of the property could exceed €100 million, and the buyer would also have to factor in the cost of the refurbishment.

No architectural protection

One of the features of the property is the lack of architectural protection, with the exception of the baroque doorway that overlooks the Plaza de las Descalzas. This makes the building a unique opportunity in the centre of the capital, according to market sources, vis-à-vis the Canalejas project, which is being developed by Villar Mir, whose construction has been unblocked this week by the courts, and Edificio España, acquired by the Chinese group Wanda, which had requested permission to dismantle the protected façade of that building brick by brick, to then rebuild it. That request was rejected by the Local Historical Heritage Commission of Madrid. Market sources believe that the operation could be closed by the end of this year or the beginning of 2016, and that the property, if it does end up being converted into a hotel, would open its doors in 2018, after the Four Seasons.

Original story: Cinco Días

Translation: Carmel Drake

Judge Lets Villar Mir Resume Work On Canalejas

3 November 2015 – Expansión

The judge at lower court number 54 in Madrid has lifted the temporary suspension imposed on the construction of Project Canalejas, located in the centre of Madrid.

The work to refurbish the complex – where Grupo Villar Mir wants to construct a Four Seasons hotel, a shopping arcade and luxury housing – has been suspended since 14 October, after a claim filed by the Basque company R&A Palace Gestión was accepted for processing.

The claimant denounced the alleged damage to the heritage of the seven buildings that comprise the complex, and which have different degrees of (historical) protection.

The Court in Madrid has taken the decision after the owner of OHL paid a pledge (aval) amounting to €163,000. Thanks to the legal decision, Villar Mir can resume the renovation work immediately.

The aval from the owner is significantly lower than the amount demanded by R&A Palace, which requested that it be equal to half of the total investment in the project, estimated at €500 million.

The Villar Mir complex had already been approved by the Town Hall of Madrid and the Community of Madrid after reductions were made to its buildable area. Following the agreement, Canalejas will house a 205-room hotel managed by Four Seasons, a retail space measuring 15,000 m2 managed by Grupo Villar Mir and around 22 luxury homes, which will be sold for c. €12,000/m2.

Original story: Expansión (by R.R.)

Translation: Carmel Drake