Norwegian insurer scores €1b December sales hat trick

Norwegian insurer DNB Liv has secured its third major real estate sale in December with the disposal of a Stockholm hotel for SEK 1.75 bn (€189 mln).

The transaction brings the life insurer's total sales volume across three transactions in three Nordic countries during December to over €1 bn.

Although the Stockholm Waterfront Hotel and Convention Centre is located in the Swedish capital, the transaction was an exclusively Norwegian affair, with the insurer, known as DNB Liv, selling the asset to Oslo-based real estate investment company KLP Eiendom.

Earlier this week DNB Liv sold the Olso City retail and office asset to Paris-listed shopping centre investor Klépierre and Entra, a Norwegian office investor, for €528 mln. Pangea Property Partners advised DNB in both the hotel and Oslo City transactions.

At the beginning of the month London-based fund manager Coller Capital pulled off the largest direct property acquisition in Denmark so far this year when it acquired Project Harald, DNB Liv's 1,000 unit residential portfolio, for an estimated volume of €300 mln to €350 mln.

Catella Corporate Finance advised on the marketing process of the Project Harald portfolio which consists of 22 residential properties.

Hotel
The Stockholm Waterfront Hotel and Convention Centre operates as the Radisson Blu Waterfront Hotel. The property features 414 guest rooms and the adjoining congress centre comprises 14,000 m2 of floor space, providing room for 3,000 people.

DNB has owned the site since 2008 and the hotel and congress centre opened there in 2011. The hotel generated SEK 79 mln of rental income in 2015.

'This is one of Stockholm's most environmentally friendly hotels and it is situated in a great location,' said Tom Rathke, DNB Group's executive vice-president of wealth management.

The sale, he continued, achieved a good result for DNB Liv's customers and was part of the process of adapting to the new regulatory framework for life insurance companies. 'As owner of a large real estate portfolio it is also natural for us to refresh our holdings by periodically buying and selling properties, and taking gains when available,' Rathke added.

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PropertyEU Magazine
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PropertyEU's December 2015 edition features a special report on the European hotel investment sector, and a focus on the Nordics.