Skanska has sold Building B of the Green Court Bucharest office complex for €47m. The property has been acquired by investment company Globalworth Real Estate Investments, the current owner of Building A. The Green Court Bucharest scheme is Skanska’s first Romanian office development.
The Green Court Bucharest office complex comprises three buildings with a total leasable area of approximately 54,500 m². After originally acquiring the land for the project in 2012, Skanska invested €46m in the development of the Green Court complex. The sale of Building A to Globalworth Real Estate Investments was finalized in June 2015 for €44m, with the company now acquiring its second property at the development.
“We are pleased to have been able to continue our partnership with Skanska in Romania with the acquisition of Building B of the Green Court Bucharest project. This transaction represents an important milestone for Globalworth which will own two of the three buildings in the city’s newest class-A office park, further consolidating our leading position in Bucharest’s new central business district,” said Dimitris Raptis, Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer at Globalworth Real Estate Investments.
“The Green Court Bucharest office complex has proved to be a considerable success. The market in Bucharest is very promising for investors looking for prime office products, which compare favorably to more mature western and northern European markets, offering attractive yields and a steady, long-term rental income. The acquisition of the two Green Court Bucharest buildings, Building A last year and Building B this year by Globalworth Real Estate Investments, illustrates the increasing investor interest in Romania. It is evident that global players see great potential in this market, that is why Skanska has further plans to launch one or two projects a year in Bucharest. We believe that this city is a place with an increasing demand for high-class office buildings,” said Adrian Karczewicz, Transaction Director at Skanska Commercial Development Europe.
The demand for office space in Romania is expected to grow in the coming years, especially in Bucharest, which is a result of the development of the services sector and the positive situation in the labor market. The country was ranked sixth in the top 10 countries for jobs created by FDI, as presented by EY. In 2014, Romania saw the creation of 10,892 new jobs, which was a 77% increase y-o-y. According to the Association of Business Service Leaders (ABSL), Romania is the second-fastest growing shared-services and outsourcing market in Central and Eastern Europe. There are already more than 80 centres employing about 45,000 people in the country and Bucharest is one of the main business-services locations. The Romanian business-services sector is expected to employ 150,000 to 200,000 people by 2020. This is a clear signal to office developers. Skanska conducted extensive research before entering the Romanian market, the results of which were very promising. The company now sees that developments such as Green Court Bucharest can easily find tenants and a buyer as high-quality buildings in good locations are very attractive to both of these groups.
Green Court Bucharest is a modern, class-A office complex newly constructed in Bucharest's new central business district. It was commissioned for use at the beginning of April 2015. The total leasable area of Building B is approximately 18,600 m². It is already over 80% leased, with major tenants such as Sanofi Romania, Adecco Romania, Carrefour Romania, Colgate Palmolive Romania and RINF Outsourcing Solutions.
The office complex is expected to receive LEED Gold certification and features sustainable solutions used to minimize the building’s environmental footprint and significantly reduce its operating costs. Modern technology such as the energy-efficient double-skin facade and the lighting system equipped with motion and light-intensity sensors will guarantee a comfortable work environment. Special parking spaces and facilities for bicycles, a green interior courtyard with free Wi-Fi, and charging points for electric cars will also be available.
In the transaction Skanska was advised by CBRE, acting as the company’s exclusive agent. Legal advisors were Nestor Nestor Diculescu Kingston Petersen to the purchaser and PeliFilip to the seller.
