Tristan Capital Partners is investing €72.5m in a prime residential apartment block in Dublin.

The investment manager said an opportunity fund it manages is investing in the development on the former Dún Laoghaire golf course.

The deal is the first large-scale forward commitment structure in Ireland since the market recovery began.

The manager’s European Property Investors Special Opportunities IV (EPISO 4) will buy the 181,000 sq ft Neptune Building upon completion next year.

SW3 Capital, the fund’s operating partner and investment advisor on the joint venture, will also take a minority interest in the scheme. The deal is the first between SW3 and Tristan Capital under their Vert brand. The fund will seek to acquire further assets in the build to rent sector.

Peter Mather, managing director of investments at Tristan Capital, said with residential development having shut down during the financial crisis, Dublin has been left with an “acute shortage of housing as the Irish economy recovers and its population grows”.

The population of greater Dublin may grow by as much 20% during the next 15 years, according to figures from Ireland’s Central Statistics Office. The city needs to add an estimated 12,000 homes annually.

The site is being developed by Cosgrave Property Group, with backing from Ireland’s National Asset Management Agency (NAMA).