Risanamento mulls sale of Falck site, JV on Milano Santa Giulia

Italian property developer Risanamento said on Friday it has been approached by leading international investors in relation to its vast redevelopment of the Falck steel factory in Sesto San Giovanni, and its large redevelopment plan in Milano Santa Giulia.

The Italian company said that a leading Dutch property group specialised in the development of shopping centres has shown interest in a partnership to develop the 100,000 m² of commercial space at Milano Santa Giulia. A company spokesperson told PropertyEU that the Dutch company 'could be Multi Development,' but added that there are also other interested parties. In a statement, Risanamento added that its board will 'carefully' study the offers in the coming days.

Earlier this month, the company was said to have received an offer from the Arab fund Limitless for the Falck site. A company spokesperson said on Friday that the media speculation was 'not far from the truth.' The site has a book value of some EUR 300mln, but market experts say it could fetch as much as EUR 700mln.

Risanamento, which is headed by Luigi Zunino, has hired Cushman & Wakefield to market the sale of the Sky complex located in the south of the Milano Santa Giulia project. The Italian company has appointed Stefano Honorati as new the chief financial officer from 2 July.

The scheme, designed by Australian architects Byron Harford & Associates, consists of three Grade-A office buildings, providing an area of about 90,000 m². The project, which is close to completion, is fully let to Sky Italia, for 12 years with one renewable option. The property generates rent of EUR 15.1mln per annum. The first two buildings, representing about 73% of the complex, have already been completed, while the third building is due for completion in the end of 2009.

The Italian developer said it will appoint an international broker in the next few days for the sale of 660 Madison Avenue building in New York, which comprises 24,000 m² of primarily office space.

Additionally, the company said it has signed several preliminary contracts to sell part of its trading portfolio including a portfolio of 55 bank agencies located across Italy to an Italian investor for a price of EUR 76mln. The buyer was not disclosed. The transaction is expected to be completed in September.

Risanamento was said last month to have been approached by two Arab funds, Mubadala and Limitless, for its major development projects Milano Santa Giulia and the Falck area. The company, which in May admitted to being 'particularly affected' by the turmoil in the financial markets, had said earlier it was putting its trading properties and other real estate assets - estimated to be worth up to EUR 1bn - on the market to help improve its debt situation. The company ended 2007 with a net debt of EUR 2.5bn.