German fund manager Commerz Real is in exclusive talks with CEE property developer Trigranit to buy a stake in its Bonarka shopping centre in the Polish city of Krakow, according to reliable sources. In an interview with PropertyEU, Trigranit's Chief Investment Officer Zsolt Szabo declined to comment on the report. He confirmed, however, that the company is in negotiations with an international institutional investor to sell a 50% interest in the scheme, which is valued at over EUR 250 mln.

German fund manager Commerz Real is in exclusive talks with CEE property developer Trigranit to buy a stake in its Bonarka shopping centre in the Polish city of Krakow, according to reliable sources. In an interview with PropertyEU, Trigranit's Chief Investment Officer Zsolt Szabo declined to comment on the report. He confirmed, however, that the company is in negotiations with an international institutional investor to sell a 50% interest in the scheme, which is valued at over EUR 250 mln.

'We are not going to sell 100% of the scheme at present, because this is really a trophy asset where we expect a big future upside potential,' Szabo said. 'We are looking to sell around 50%, although we have received several offers for the entire asset,' he said, adding that Trigranit will retain the management of the centre.

The investor could become a strategic partner of the company in other projects in the future, he said. Commerz Real declined to either confirm or deny the report.

According to Szabo, the company has been 'bombarded' with offers for the landmark property, which opened its doors in November last year. Szabo: 'Investors are very picky in the CEE market, but they show a lot of interest in the highest quality assets.'

Bonarka, located in Southern Poland, offers 91,000 m2 of space across 270 shops, cafés, restaurants and other facilities in a restored post-industrial area in the city. Trigranit has taken on a EUR 200 mln loan to finance the construction of the project.

Last Thursday, Trigranit received approval from shareholders for the development of the office element of Bonarka, which will include four high-class office buildings and a residential estate, bringing total investment to EUR 500 mln. 'The basic terms of the loan agreement for the second phase have been accepted by the banks, which means we will now accelerate the leasing process,' Szabo added.