Singapore’s CapitaLand Ascendas REIT (CLAR) has acquired its fifth data centre in the UK for £119.4 mln (€139.7 mln) from a global data centre operator.
The purchase consideration was arrived on a debt-free basis and included an 18-month rental top-up provided by the vendor.
Located in Watford, NW London, the Tier III co-location data centre offers sufficient power and strong connectivity to meet the colocation requirements of enterprises and end-users in the area.
The property is 80% occupied by five investment-grade tenants, operating in the ICT, retail, energy, and financial services sectors. Three of them have been using the property for over a decade.
William Tay, CEO and executive director of Ascendas, commented: ‘London ranks among the top three global data centre markets and is also Europe’s largest colocation data centre market. This acquisition complements our data centres around London, deepening and boosting our data centre investments in the UK by 54% to S$569.8 mln (€386.0 mln), as well as increasing our exposure in London to 96% of our investments in the UK. Given its strategic location and Tier III specifications, along with its robust tenancy, the Property will serve as a strong catalyst in delivering additional value to the REIT. We expect our enlarged data centre portfolio valued at S$1.5 bn (€1.0 bn) to contribute a continuous income stream towards our overall DPU growth.’
The property boasts excellent connectivity to major transport hubs and is highly accessible from London.
North-West London is a hotspot for data centre developers, providing an attractive option to the power-constrained and relatively expensive central London region.
Additionally, the acquisition will significantly expand CLAR's data centre footprint in Europe.
