UK real estate investor Harleyford Capital and Fiera Real Estate are acquiring a site in London for an £80m (€93.5m) logistics scheme.
The pair have agreed to buy an 8.5-acre development site in Watford, north of London, with a plan to speculatively build 180,000sqft of logistics space across 13 units. Harleyford Capital will be responsible for the delivery of the project.
The latest deal is the seventh transaction for the Fiera Real Estate Logistics Development Fund (FRELD), which completed its second close in the third quarter of 2023 with over £225m of equity commitments.
FRELD’s strategy is to acquire development sites for constructing small to mid-sized, Grade A logistics facilities.
Charlie Allen, the head of European real estate at Fiera Real Estate, said: “We are pleased to have exchanged this transaction alongside Harleyford Capital and today’s deal, which we expect to be the first of many, demonstrates their capabilities and experience, and we look forward to supporting the team with their growth aspirations going forward.”
Thomas Mallindine, managing director of asset management at Harleyford Capital, said: “We are excited to bring forward plans to deliver an ESG-leading, institutional urban logistics product into a market which has seen a dearth of Grade A supply over the last cycle with a catchment of over 25m people within a two-hour drive time.
”We look forward to preparing a planning application this year and to commence development as soon as possible.”
Dean Harrison, managing director of investments at Harleyford Capital, added: “The value proposition in UK logistics has been bolstered by the market correction and we continue to source attractive off-market logistics deals for our partners and investors.”
The UK investment arm of Fiera Real Estate is a minority shareholder in Harleyford Capital.
To read the latest IPE Real Assets magazine click here.
