Pan-European logistics specialist Verdion has acquired a 6.67ha industrial site in Gelsenkirchen, Germany from Bekaert for a planned €68m urban logistics development.
Verdion acquired the former steel rope factory site on behalf of its Verdion European Logistics Fund 2 (VELF 2), with plans to speculatively develop 37,675sqm of space across two self-contained blocks.
Moritz Heißenberg, executive director, head of Germany, at Verdion, said: “This acquisition further strengthens our development pipeline in Germany, securing a strategically located site in the heart of one of Europe’s largest industrial and consumer markets.
“With excellent connectivity and access to a substantial customer base, we expect strong occupier demand from e-commerce, light manufacturing and last-mile distribution businesses, continuing our strategy of delivering flexible, modern space in prime urban locations with constrained supply.”
Oliver Kemper, head of investment, Germany at Verdion, said: “This acquisition is a strong fit with our investment strategy for VELF 2. We remain disciplined in targeting brownfield opportunities in established urban markets where we see clear potential to create value through redevelopment.
“Gelsenkirchen combines strong underlying demand fundamentals with the opportunity to transform an underutilised industrial site into modern, flexible logistics space.”
The acquisition represents VELF 2’s third transaction in Germany over the last six months. In June, the fund acquired a brownfield site in Munich to speculatively develop a €96m LiteHub, following the acquisition of a former production site in northern Cologne in February to create a €95m urban logistics hub.
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