Multi Corporation and Union Investment have finalized an agreement to purchase the remaining 35% of the shares owned by Multi. Union Investment will be the 100% owner of the Forum Mersin shopping center in the South East of Turkey.
The Hamburg-based real estate investment manager paid 68 million to acquire the 35% stake for its open-ended real estate fund UniImmo: Global. Forum Mersin contains 213 shops anchored by a hypermarket and DIY in the middle of Mersin city. Forum Mersin is one of the 8 shopping centers opened by Multi in Turkey. All Multi shopping centers and developments in Turkey are owned by the Multi Turkey Retail Fund co-owned by Canadian Pension Plan. Multi Corporation will continue to be responsible for the center management and asset management of Forum Mersin.
The half-covered 2.5 story Forum offers 72,000 m² of retail space, 4,500 m² for food units and 5,000 m² of leisure space. The center is let on long-term leases to major retailers including MediaMarkt, Zara, Migros and department stores. The center opened in autumn 2007, was awarded by ICSC in 2008 for "Best new Large Development" and, with some 17 million visitors in 2009, is the dominant retail destination in South East Turkey.
"This agreement reflects the high and proven quality of Forum Mersin as well as the strong belief of our long term partner Union Investment in the Turkish retail market and the management of Multi. The transaction fits in the strategy of the Multi Turkey Retail Fund of re-using capital for the future development pipeline", said Roderik Zegering Hadders, General Manager of the Multi Turkey Retail Fund.
Source: Multi
