Citycon buys €75m Danish mall project at 6.25% yield

Nordic listed retail specialist Citycon has expanded its presence in Denmark with the acquisition of the Straedet mall project in Copenhagen from local developer TK Development in a forward-funding deal expected to be worth €75 mln.

Citycon will acquire the grocery-anchored, open-air shopping centre at a fixed 6.25% net initial yield.

Located in Køge, in the greater Copenhagen area, the shopping centre will provide 19,000 m2 of gross leasable area anchored by two grocery retailers and a six-screen cinema. It will house some 38 retail units, cafés and restaurants as well as 13,000 m2 of parking areas.

The scheme forms part of a larger development project which also includes a 3,000 m2 extension of the town hall, a rehabilitation centre of about 6,000 m2, as well as 6,300 m2 of residential units.

'This new, attractive urban development fits perfectly with our portfolio and philosophy of investing in every day shopping. With this transaction we continue to build our platform in Denmark and we see opportunities in the market also going forward,' said Nils Styf, CIO of Citycon.

He added: 'Our focus in Denmark remains on urban grocery-anchored shopping centres in the greater Copenhagen area.'

TK Development expects to start construction during the first quarter of 2015 and the project is scheduled to open in phases with final completion expected for the second quarter of 2017.