Beni Stabili may sell Garibaldi towers to municipality

The municipality of Milan is considering Beni Stabili's Garibaldi Towers as one of the options for its new head office in the city, CEO Aldo Mazzocco told PropertyEU at the Expo Italia Real Estate (EIRE) fair being held in Milan this week. The project, which comprises around 40,000 m² of space, was launched in April last year and the first tower is due for completion at the beginning of 2010.

The municipality is studying an option to buy the property, but it will likely take another year before a final decision is made, Mazzocco said. A number of other companies are also interested in the Garibaldi complex. Beni Stabili will invest over EUR 60 mln in the development of the scheme in the city centre. The company has carried out a number of sales this year and is targeting up to EUR 300 mln of disposals for 2009, he added.

In response to the question whether Beni Stabili is still seeking REIT status, Mazzocco said that a number of options are still open to acquire the tax-efficient regime. The group's majority shareholder Fonciere des Regions which has a 69% stake could sell part of its interest in the company if it obtains 'a reasonable price', which today looks unlikely considering the financial markets, Mazzocco said. Alternatively, the 51% shareholding limit on the Italian REIT regime could be upped to 75% by the end of 2009 as part of a possible reform of the SIIQ system.

Mazzocco said that the most likely solution at this point in time is the reform of the tax regime. 'I hope the situation can be resolved by the end of the year,' he said.