Warburg-HIH Invest has acquired a logistic property in Bleiswijk near Rotterdam for Korean investors led by Midas International Asset Management and NH Investment & Securities. The property was sold by a joint venture between the investment manager USAA Realco Europe.
The property is let in its entirety to Zalando, Europe’s leading online platform for fashion and lifestyle. The site occupies a plot area of 250,000m² and includes around 1,200 parking spots. The completed building will have a gross lettable area of 140,000m², including about 12,000m² of office space. This will make it the largest single-tenant logistics property in the Netherlands. As a result of the high sustainability standards that the property meets, the building is expected to receive a BREEAM “Very Good” certification.
“Due to its geographic location at the North Sea with the Port of Rotterdam, inland rivers and excellent road and rail system the Netherlands is the gateway to mainland Europe. Due to this position our country has become an important hub for logistic services and therefore the logistics real estate market is well matured. Increasing international trade and e-commerce has driven the occupier demand for logistic real estate heavily and this asset class thusly has a high priority with investors. Notwithstanding the competitive environment we were able to acquire a sustainable logistics property on behalf of our Korean partners,” said Reinoud Plantenga, Managing Director of Warburg-HIH Invest Benelux.
“This deal was transacted entirely during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, including site inspections, negotiations, audits and acquisition. Our Korean investors had the capacity to act even during these special times and show a keen interest in the European property market,” said Matthias Brodesser, Head of Transaction Management International at Warburg-HIH Invest.
“We are very pleased to have completed this transaction together with Warburg-HIH as logistics real estate is a favourable and crisis-resilient asset class. This acquisition complements our requirements of grade A logistics assets with grade A covenant and location as it supports our strategy of expanding our investment horizon in Europe and to continue to deliver sustainable returns to our investors,” said Eun Young Hyun, Managing Director of Midas International Asset Management.
“This transaction further diversifies NH Securities & Investment’s asset mix into the latest trend in logistics in the Netherlands since our investment in the office asset ‘Edge Amsterdam West’ in Amsterdam in 2018, and we are pleased with the progress especially during the Covid-19 situation. NH Securities & Investment has a long track record for investing high-quality assets in strategic locations and this investment is in line with our vision. Looking ahead, we expect the Dutch real estate market will maintain its strong performance and we are glad about our successful collaboration with Warburg-HIH Invest and having invested once again in the Netherlands,” said Chris Park, Managing Director of NH Securities & Investment.
