Development resumes at La Défense

Around 100,000 m² of office space has been delivered at La Défense this year, according to Raphael Catonnet, deputy managing director of EPAD, the body overseeing development in the Parisian business district.

Development activity virtually came to a halt in La Défense during 2008-9.

' The delivery of the CB21 tower has marked the restart of building activity after a long period of crisis,' Catonnet said. 'Next year, we are expecting 123,000 m² of new office space to be completed, with the delivery of the first tower and Société Générale's Basalte building. Of this, roughly 80,000 m² is already leased.'

A further three tower projects have seen construction resume in the past months - Carpe Diem, Descartes and Athena - with delivery expected over the next three to four years. As a further indication of the positive sentiment in the market, Russian Mirax Group’s French subsidiary Hermitage recently announced plans for the development of a new mixed-use tower At j250,000 m² of space will be the largest ever realised at La Défense.

Around 30,000 m² will be destined for offices, 150,000 m² for residential, 35,000 m² for hotel and the rest for shops. Funding of the new development does not represent a major concern, Catonnet said.

'The new Hermitage skyscraper will involve an investment of EUR 2 bn, which is to be financed through own equity and income from the sale of the residential units. Currently, just EUR 600 mln still needs to be financed.' Construction work is due to begin in 2011, with delivery scheduled for 2015.