W. P. Carey announces €75 million acquisition of Apply AS Headquarters in Stavanger (NO)

W. P. Carey Inc, a global net-lease REIT specializing in corporate sale-leaseback, build-to-suit financing and the acquisition of single-tenant net-lease properties, announced today that CPA®:17 – Global and CPA®:18 – Global, two of its managed REITs, have jointly acquired the headquarters of Apply AS in Stavanger, Norway, for approximately NOK 662 million (€78 million).  
Established industry operator with solid financial sponsorship, Apply AS (Apply) is a Norwegian oil and gas industry topside engineering and services company and is majority owned by Køhlergruppen—the founding family of the predecessor to Apply, Sørco Group—and HitecVision, Europe’s leading private equity firm dedicated to the oil & gas industry. With approximately 1,600 employees, Apply is one of the top three providers of Maintenance, Modification and Operations (MMO) services for the offshore sector on the Norwegian Continental Shelf, one of the world’s largest proven oil reserves. In addition to its MMO business, Apply is a global leader in the production of aluminium living quarters for offshore installations.
Stavanger is considered the oil capital of Europe and the center for North Sea oil exploration. The office is located in Forus, the largest and one of the fastest growing submarkets in the Stavanger region.
Arvi Luoma, Director of W. P. Carey, commented: “The acquisition of the Apply headquarters marks our third high profile transaction in Norway this year, following CPA®:18 – Global’s purchase of Siemens’ new Norwegian headquarters in Oslo and W. P. Carey Inc.’s acquisition of French oil major Total’s Norwegian headquarters in Stavanger.”
“This transaction is in line with our investment strategy of acquiring high-quality, mission critical assets. It comes with a long-term commitment from Apply AS, one of the leading MMO service providers in the Norwegian market. In our view, the importance of the oil and gas industry to Norway, in conjunction with Apply’s market position, further enhances the strength of the tenant’s credit. Additionally, we were pleased to yet again be working with a leading private equity company, demonstrating our longstanding strength and expertise in working with this sector.”
Egil Stokka, Senior Partner of HitecVision, noted: “We are delighted to complete this transaction with W. P. Carey, enabling us to release capital for other projects. W. P. Carey’s financial strength, experience working with global private equity firms and their track record of delivery in the Norwegian market made them an ideal counterparty in this transaction.”
Source: W. P. Carey

Related News