The C$60bn (€41bn) real estate subsidiary of the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec is investing in a life science real estate portfolio in India.

Ivanhoé Cambridge said the 0.8m sqft MN Park portfolio in Genome Valley, Hyderabad is being acquired alongside the portfolio’s existing asset manager, Lighthouse Canton.

The MN Park portfolio will receive investment from Ivanhoé Cambridge and Lighthouse Canton in an 80:20 ratio, respectively.

MN Park, India’s largest privately-owned portfolio of leased life sciences R&D office labs, is occupied by over 20 entities.

The companies said the initial plan is to focus on consolidating the portfolio with “select value accretive acquisitions in relevant life science R&D clusters in India”.

Chanakya Chakravarti, managing director in India, at Ivanhoé Cambridge, said: “This new investment in MN Park allows us to reinforce our conviction in life science real estate, a key focus area of our diversification strategy into high growth, innovation-focused sectors.

“We anticipate that India will further cement its position in the global life science arena in the post-pandemic world. A new healthcare focus positions office labs as a unique and exciting opportunity.

”We look forward to participating in this high growth sector by expanding the portfolio through select acquisitions in partnership with an aligned asset manager.”

Shilpi Chowdhary, CEO of Lighthouse Canton, said: ”The life sciences office labs has been a high conviction theme for the firm since our acquisition of MN Park portfolio in 2016. We are pleased to be co-investing with Ivanhoé Cambridge, a firm which is deeply aligned with this strategy.

”We aim to continue delivering high-quality infrastructure that will set a benchmark for such assets in the country and look forward to continue supporting the growth of the life sciences sector across India.“

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