Barings Real Estate has acquired a 184,000 m2 logistics asset in Germany for €90 mln from a joint venture between an unnamed US investor and M7 Real Estate.
The purchase represents one of the largest transactions within the European logistics sector over the last 12 months, Barings said, without disclosing the financial details.
The asset is fully let to local department store chain Karstadt until 2026 and it operates as their national distribution site. The asset is located in Unna, a city at the border of the Ruhr industrial area close to Dortmund.
'Following recent acquisitions of logistics assets in both Spain and France, we are pleased to have now completed our first acquisition in this sector in Germany,' said Christoph Wittkop, managing director and country head, Germany at Barings.
The company plans to 'significantly increase its logistics exposure across Europe, including CEE, through the acquisition of existing assets as well as through forward funding or purchasing developments', he added. 'We are targeting core to value-add opportunities and will consider both single properties, as well as country-focused or pan-European portfolios.'
'By acquiring the Unna logistics scheme over two years ago, our timing was excellent. We quickly succeeded in generating an attractive investment product, for which there were numerous potential buyers. This enabled us to realise a significant value increase for the joint venture’s shareholders, while leaving further potential value creation for the purchaser,' added Alyssa Huse, managing director of M7 in Germany (pictured).
Savills acted as agent on the transaction and Barings was advised by RLI Investors. Goodwin acted as legal adviser to Barings while Simmons & Simmons acted for the vendor.
