UK warehouse REIT Tritax Big Boxhas agreed to acquire and forward fund the development of two new distribution warehouse facilities at Warth Park, Raunds, England.
The properties are pre-let in their entirety under two separate 30 year leases to kitchen supplier group Howdens Joinery.
Tritax Big Box originally exchanged contracts, conditional on planning consent, in December 2016 but said that completion of the deal was delayed due to a prolonged challenge to the planning consent which has now been cleared.
The agreed investment price has been amended to £103.7 mln (€117 mln), to reflect a longer construction period due to the delayed planning consent and revised construction programme. The purchase price represents a net initial yield of 5.0% (net of land acquisition costs) upon completion of the leases.
The two distribution facilities, which will stand adjacent to one another and to the company's existing Howdens facility, are under separate freehold titles and will be completed to a high specification with target gross internal floor areas of 657,000 sq ft (61,000 m2) and 300,000 sq ft, respectively.
Completion of the construction of the two facilities is due to take approximately 21 months with completion of the two new leases expected by winter 2019.
Colin Godfrey, Partner of Tritax, commented: 'Following the successful completion of the first Howdens building, which the Company agreed to forward fund in September 2015, we are delighted to be investing on the second phase of Howdens' two new distribution centres. Once completed, these three high specification facilities totalling 1.6 million sq ft will provide Howdens with a 'centre of excellence' for its national supply chain operations.'
