Bain Capital Credit acting together with FREO Group has completed the joint acquisition of the Estel Building on Avenida de Roma, in central Barcelona. Bain Capital now owns real estate assets in Spain in excess of €2.3bn of asset value across multiple asset classes including high-quality offices, residential development and leisure led hospitality.
The Estel building is iconic and one of the most recognisable buildings in Barcelona. Located in the city’s desirable Eixample district, the property is well connected and in close proximity to Barcelona’s CBD, largest railway station Sants and multiple metro lines. The 14-storey building was originally developed as the headquarters of the Spanish national telecommunications company Telefonica.
Bain Capital and FREO plan to develop the Estel building into a modern and unique destination that will offer 47,000m² of best-in-class, Grade A office space, as well as retail and dining amenities, and has been designed to appeal to a range of occupiers through the provision of flexible floor plates. In addition, tenant amenities in the building will include an auditorium, meeting rooms, gym, sports and entertainment rooms plus other additional services, and the building will feature two large roof terraces, with spectacular views over the city’s most famous landmarks, as well as the nearby mountains and the sea. The design of the building will target the highest sustainability and ESG standards including a Leed Platinum certificate.
Oscar de Navas, Managing Director of FREO said: “As the largest Grade A office building in Barcelona, Estel will set a new standard in high-quality and sustainable workspaces and will provide prospective tenants with future-proof and state-of-the-art amenities to ensure the building retains its appeal with future generations.”
Fabio Longo, Managing Director at Bain Capital commented: “The acquisition of the Estel building is an outstanding opportunity to create a prime office asset of size, that addresses tenants and investors’ requirements in a post-Covid world, in a market characterised by a long-term lack of best in class product with large floor plates in such central locations and constrained by fundamental limitations of new supply.”
