Garbe Industrial Real Estate GmbH, in a joint venture with a fund managed by BlackRock, has acquired a nearly 200,000m2 brownfield site in Salzgitter, one of the most important industrial locations in Lower Saxony. The joint venture aims to develop the site for large-scale logistics. Construction of the 70,000m2 logistics property is scheduled to commence in the first quarter of 2025 and be completed in 2026.
This purchase marks one of the initial projects of the joint venture between Garbe Industrial Real Estate and a fund managed by the global asset manager BlackRock. The joint venture plans to establish a portfolio of logistics and commercial properties with strong sustainability features. It will consider new builds as well as modernizing existing properties in Europe, particularly in Germany and France.
The seller of the property in Salzgitter is the Hagedorn Group. The company has redeveloped over 3.5m m2 of brownfield land to date.
Gypsum fiberboards were manufactured on the site from 1971 to 2003. The production buildings have been demolished, and the site's floor has been renovated.
"Transforming sealed, unused areas into modern, sustainable properties is our strategic approach. We have been working successfully with Hagedorn for years to achieve this goal," said Adrian Zellner, Member of the Executive Board of Garbe Industrial Real Estate.
A property with a total area of 63,000m2 is planned. There will be 4,000m2 of storage space on mezzanine floors and 3,000m2 for offices and social rooms. The new building will have 65 dock levellers and 19 ground-level gates. Outdoor parking will be available for 200 cars and 20 trucks. The property will be designed to meet the needs of traditional logistics service providers as well as potential users from the automotive sector. Features such as side loading and unloading options under a canopy will be included. In order to store batteries for electric and hybrid vehicles, a waterproofing foil will be installed under the floor slab in accordance with the Water Resources Act (WHG).
The new property will be built in accordance with the BEG-40 (Federal Funding for Efficient Buildings) standard, requiring 40% less primary energy compared to a reference building. A photovoltaic system is planned to be installed on the entire roof area to generate renewable energy. Garbe Industrial Real Estate aims to achieve certification according to the Gold Standard of the German Sustainable Building Council for the property. The new building will be located on a 35,000m2 forest already present on the site.
"Although we are developing the project with a view to the future, we expect full occupancy during the construction phase due to the high demand," emphasised Adrian Zellner. "The main reason why there is so much interest is that we are creating settlement potential for large-scale logistics and a wide range of uses through high-quality construction – and at an attractive location in a very good location south of the Hanover, Wolfsburg and Braunschweig city Triangle."
The new building is being constructed in the Salzgitter-Heerte district, just a few km from the A39. It connects the location to the north with Braunschweig and Wolfsburg, as well as the A2 Dortmund-Berlin motorway, and to the south with the A7 Hamburg-Ulm motorway. This means that the planned property is connected to both the east-west and north-south axes. The Salzgitter-Watenstedt junction can be reached in four minutes without driving through the town. Renowned companies from the automotive industry and the rail technology and logistics sectors have already settled in the vicinity.
Image provided by AD HOC.
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