NORTH AMERICA – Ivanhoe Cambridge has made a total investment of CAD500m (€360m) into the Place Ville Marie office complex in downtown Montreal for a 50% stake in the property.
Alberta Investment Management Corp controls the remainder of the ownership.
The investment includes CAD400m to buy its position in the property and an additional CAD100m for planned improvements.
Ivanhoe Cambridge is looking for a larger presence in downtown Montreal in future.
Claude Sirois, executive vice-president for Quebec at the pension fund, said: “We are working on several investment opportunities as part of a downtown Montreal plan.
“This is where we enjoy significant presence in retail, office, hotel – to make the downtown core more dynamic, to maintain and reinforce the best-in-class experience in our properties.
“That could include development, redevelopment, new partners and projects, new operators and tenants.
“No precise dollar figure has been firmed up on these transactions – each investment will be decided according to key investment criteria.”
In other news, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) has completed several real estate transactions during the first quarter of its fiscal year, which ended on 30 June.
One of the investments involved the expansion of a 50/50 joint venture with Oxford Properties Group, with both partners contributing to the acquisition of regional malls.
CPPIB acquired a 50% stake in the Upper Canada Mall in Newmarket, Ontario, while Oxford purchased a 50% piece in Les Galeries de la Capitale in Quebec City.
Another deal included a €307m investment in the Bullring Shopping Centre in Birmingham in the UK.
CPPIB now owns a 33.3% stake in the property.
The rest of the property is owned by Hammerson.
