Consortium pulls off largest Dutch single-asset sale of 2010

A consortium of developers and pension funds has sold the Wilhelminahof offices and courts complex in Rotterdam in the largest Dutch single-asset deal of 2010.

The 81,000-m² mixed-use complex was acquired for around EUR 220 mln by the Dutch Government Buildings Agency (GBA). The transaction was announced on 31 December.

The members of the vendor consortium are ING RED, MAB Development Nederland and the pension funds of telecom company KPN and postal group TNT, represented by TKP Investments.

CB Richard Ellis and Houthoff Buruma acted for the consortium, while Jones Lang LaSalle and Pels Rijcken & Droogleever Fortuijn advised GBA.

The purchase is in keeping with GBA’s policy to buy strategic buildings, if ownership is more effective than leasing. In late 2009, the agency bought seven court buildings located in various Dutch cities from ING Real Estate Development.

Wilhelminahof houses the courts and tax authorities, and other tenants. The complex was not included in the previous courts purchase due to a lack of clarity concerning the technical condition of the buildings. An agreement has since been reached with the consortium.

The complex was the first phase in the development of offices in the prestigious 'Kop van Zuid' area of Rotterdam in 1996. The complex is also part of a large-scale 1990s development project, in which a number of market parties developed court buildings at the request of the government. These buildings were leased on a long-term basis by GBA upon completion.