EUROPE – Norway’s giant Government Pension Fund Global is investing in its third property in Germany in a joint deal with AXA Real Estate to buy a Munich office building for €164m.
Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), which manages the NOK4.9trn (€593bn) Norwegian sovereign wealth fund, said the transaction to buy the 28-storey, 62,000sqm SZ Tower was set to complete before the end of the year.
AXA Real Estate, acting on behalf of AXA France Insurance Companies, and NBIM were buying the building from publicly listed Prime Office REIT-AG, the Norwegian asset manager said.
AXA Real Estate and NBIM are each buying a 50% share in the property, representing an investment of €82m.
NBIM said it first entered the German property market at the end of 2012 through a joint venture with AXA Real Estate, buying the two assets “Die Welle” in Frankfurt am Main and “Neues Kranzler Eck” in Berlin.
The SZ Tower serves as the headquarters of the German publishing group Süddeutscher Verlag, and is fully let to the company.
It has Gold LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) for sustainable construction, AXA Real Estate said.
Pierre Vaquier, chief executive of AXA Real Estate, said expanding its real estate business in Germany was a strategic priority for the company.
