Allianz Real Estate has granted 78% of a €185 mln loan for a complete restructuring operation located in the 18th arrondissement of Paris to be carried out by Icawood a fund specializing in low-carbon-emission office developments.
The loan, which was provided alongside BNP Paribas Real Estate, finances the development of a complex with 31,500 m2 of office and retail space in addition to a 78-room student residence. It will benefit from Icawood's signature innovative features – a solid wood cross-laminated timber structure built on top of a completely restructured existing base – which will be implemented by French developer WO2.
This transaction follows other green financings completed by Allianz Real Estate over the last 12 months and builds on the company’s decision to increase the share of investments dedicated to transitional assets and development loans. Previous such transactions include €200 mln in financing for the development of Arboretum in Paris and the €196 mln in debt funding in the Netherlands for the financing of Tripolis – a redevelopment project in Amsterdam.
‘Green financing has become increasingly important to us as we direct more of our lending toward future-focused assets. This new financing with Icawood is an excellent example of the type of asset that will further strengthen the resilience of our loan portfolio, which has shown itself to be consistently resilient throughout the current pandemic,’ commented Roland Fuchs, head of European Real Estate Finance for Allianz Real Estate. ‘Alongside this, we believe that this restructuring operation will be an outstanding aspect within the broader renewal of this district of Paris, complementary to other projects such as Ordonner-Poissonniers and the Belliard block.’
The lending pool was assisted on the technical aspects by DePardieu Brocas Maffei, Wargny Katz and MottMacDonald.
