Belgian healthcare specialist Aedifica is launching its first new-build assets in Sweden just months after clinching a €3 bn takeover of its Nordic peer Hoivatilat.
According to the firm, Aedifica has now finished its first two brand new specialist care schemes in the country, located in Uppsala and Heby, operated by Center för Vård och Omsorg i Uppsala and Alternatus.
Stefaan Gielens, CEO of Aedifica, said: 'The Aedifica group has set foot in Sweden following the completion of two brand-new specialist residential care centres in Uppsala and Heby. We have invested approx. SEK 39 mln (€4 mln) in the construction of both properties and have already lined up a development pipeline of several new projects, some of which will be completed later this year.'
Aedifica completed the takeover of Finnish healthcare investment company Hoivatilat in January of this year, as part of plans to spearhead growth in the Nordic region. At time of takeover, Hoivatilat had an existing portfolio of 127 healthcare properties in Finland, with a committed development pipeline of 55 projects in Finland and Sweden, let to 46 private and public operators. Hoivatilat entered Sweden 18 months ago.
According to Aedifica, the Swedish market shows strong market fundamentals supporting long-term healthcare real estate investments. 'Changing demographics, an ageing population, a well-established welfare state with strong public finances and the growth of private operators will drive long-term demand for new, quality healthcare real estate, whether it be specialist residential care centres, children day-care centres or elderly care homes,' the firm said in a report on the territory.
Further projects
Three further projects are currently under construction in Älmhult, Eskilstuna and Norrtälje, representing an investment of around SEK 121 mln, with the first project due for completion in August 2020, designed to accommodate 140 children.
In addition to the projects under construction, Aedifica said its Swedish team has applied for building permits for two additional child daycare centres in the southern part of Sweden, acquired a plot of land in the Greater Stockholm region on which a specialist residential care centre for disabled persons will be built, and launched negotiations for other schemes.
'Our Swedish pipeline currently includes specialist residential care centres and children daycare centres, but in the future also elderly care homes will be added. We are pleased with this important step forward in our European growth story and we look forward to further developing the group’s activities in Northern Europe through Hoivatilat,' Gielens concluded.
