Corio has reached agreement on the acquisition of Barcelona’s seaside retail centre Maremagnum, the €4.6bn real estate fund announced.
Bar the formal approval of the town’s port authority, Corio will get control over the €122m centre as of July 1. It will purchase the centre from DLJ Real Estate Capital Partners and General Property Investment Company, which owned 80% and 20% respectively, it added.
According to Corio, Maremagnum has a retail surface of 22,000m2 and consists of a wide range of fashion retailers, good restaurants and leisure formulas. There are 850 parking spaces.
The 11-years-old centre – straight at the waterfront along Barcelona’s harbour - has been renovated last year, and focuses on leisure now. It is divided in a three-storey main building of 18,800 m2, and a 3,200m2 eight-screen cinema, run by leading operator Cinesa, it said. Maremagnum is located close to the Barcelona Aquarium and the Imax Theater.
The retail centre is build on long-lease ground, owned by the port authority. The lease will expire in 2049. Corio will have preferential rights for extending the lease, a spokeswoman told IPE.
In Corio’s opinion, there are ‘considerable’ opportunities for rental growth and costs cutting by active and professional management. “Maremagnum will directly start contributing to Corio’s returns per share,” it said.
With the present acquisition, Corio Espana owns and manages nine retail centres with a total surface of 104,000m2. It is renovating Sexta Avenida in Madrid and extending El Ferial in Parla and La Loma in Jaen.
Corio’s portfolio mainly consists of retail centres in its core countries: the Netherlands (50%), France (23%), Italy (13%). Spain (10%) and Turkey (4%). The company is listed at Euronext in Amsterdam and Paris. Its shares are quoted in the Amsterdam Midcap Index (AMX) and the MSCI World Index.
