MEXICO - Pramerica Real Estate Investors is expanding its investment operations in Mexico with a new strategic alliance with Industrial Global Solutions de Mexico SA de CV.
Pramerica anticipates it will invest in one to three million square feet of real estate on an annual basis, through the development of new properties and the acquisition of established assets.
Pablo Barcos, portfolio manager for Pramerica’s industrial fund, said it is looking to develop a mixture of manufacturing and distribution properties.
"We see very positive trends for both manufacturing and distribution in Mexico. There have been record volumes for distribution in Mexico for this year and the country has also show strong economic growth overall," said Barcos.
Key geographical markets Pramerica is looking at are Mexico City and Guadalajara where there are properties ranging from 100,000 to 500,000 square feet and with construction timeframes of around six months, similar to industrial properties in the United States.
"The facilities that we are building will look much the same as a property you would see in the US. Many of the tenants will be the same as well," said Barcos.
Pramerica is the main equity source for the strategic alliance but Industrial Global Solutions will oversee daily duties on any properties in the venture and be responsible for sourcing transactions, albeit both companies must agree for any transaction to happen.
Industrial Global Solutions is a major player as a real estate services company as the firm specializes in the leasing of both industrial and office buildings in Mexico and has been active in the Mexican market for over 30 years.
