Dutch property firm Corio said on Friday that it has reached agreement with a consortium led by White Estate Investments on the sale of its office and industrial portfolio in the Netherlands for EUR 650mln, excluding costs of EUR 5mln. Corio announced last year that it had initiated a divestment process for the assets, which are part of four separate portfolios consisting of offices and industrial properties in France and the Netherlands. Interested parties could bid for one or more portfolios.
Dutch property firm Corio said on Friday that it has reached agreement with a consortium led by White Estate Investments on the sale of its office and industrial portfolio in the Netherlands for EUR 650mln, excluding costs of EUR 5mln. Corio announced last year that it had initiated a divestment process for the assets, which are part of four separate portfolios consisting of offices and industrial properties in France and the Netherlands. Interested parties could bid for one or more portfolios.
In a statement, the listed retail-focused company said it has decided to sell the assets in the Netherlands and defer the sale of the French properties worth about EUR 400mln. 'More shareholder value is expected to be created through the sale of the assets in France at a time when the financial markets have recovered from the current negative sentiment', the company said in a statement. The cash proceeds will be used to finance Corio's retail pipeline and potential retail investments in the current distressed market.
The Dutch portfolio consists of 35 office buildings, 11 industrial assets and two parking garages, for a total 430,000 m2 of space. The properties generate rental income of EUR 50mln per annum, and will be transferred on 30 September. 'The portfolio was valued at end-2002 at EUR 542mln. By investing EUR 50mln in renovations and refurbishments in the period 2003 - 2007, we have created additional value of EUR 56mln for our shareholders. This increase in value is on top of generating an average net annual yield over the whole period of 7.5%,' CEO Jan de Kreij said.
Jones Lang LaSalle advised on the sale process. The consortium of private investors also include Brouwershoff, Galladio Capital Management, Janivo en Maarsen Groep.
Following completion of the transaction, Corio will have over 92% invested in retail. The Dutch company has a portfolio of EUR 6.5bn consisting of shopping centres in The Netherlands, France, Italy, Spain and Turkey.
White Estate Investments (WEI) is an asset and investment manager with currently about EUR 600mln of Assets under Management .WEI, with offices in Amsterdam and in Warsaw, is active in the Dutch and Central Eastern European markets.
