PGGM takes control of UK student apartment owner

Dutch pension administrator PGGM has taken a 60% stake in the University Partnerships Programme, the second largest provider of on-campus student accommodation in the UK.

PGGM Infrastructure Fund 2010 acquired the stake from funds managed by Barclays Infrastructure Funds Management (BIFM). The financial details of the transaction were not disclosed but media reports estimated the investment volume at about EUR 1 bn.

UPP works in long-term partnerships with universities to fund, develop and operate student accommodation. On its website, UPP says it has already invested £1.4 bn (EUR 1.7 bn) in the higher education sector and it planned to invest a further £1 bn with the support of Barclays Infrastructure Funds.

Henk Huizing, head of Infrastructure PGGM said, 'The deal is a good example of our efforts to increase direct investments in stable social infrastructure, focused on the long term. And, of course, it is crucial that the inflation-linked, stable cash flows perfectly match the requirements of our clients.'

PGGM has its roots in the healthcare and social work sector. It manages EUR 125 bn of pension assets on behalf of 2.5 million people in the Netherlands.

Coinciding with the PGGM-UPP transaction, Unite, the largest student accommodation specialist in the UK, announced it is extending its existing partnership, Unite Capital Cities, with GIC Real Estate, the real estate arm of the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation. Unite and GIC are also creating a new 50:50 joint venture, the London Student Accommodation Joint Venture, to invest £330 mln in development activity in London over the coming years.

Click on the link below to read: 'Unite and GIC expand UK student accommodation JV'