Acquisition of New Warehouse in The Netherlands
Aberdeen Standard European Logistics Income PLC (LSE: ASLI) (the "Company" or "ASLI")
LEI: 213800I9IYIKKNRT3G50
16 December 2019
ACQUISITION OF LOGISTICS ASSET LOCATED IN DEN HOORN, THE NETHERLANDS, FOR €49.9 MILLION
Purchase agreement
The Company is pleased to announce that it has signed an agreement to acquire a logistics warehouse in Den Hoorn, the Netherlands, for a value of €49.9 million in a share-deal, providing a net initial yield of 4.5% at SPV level. The transaction is expected to close in January 2020.
This is a newly built facility on a perpetual leasehold with option to purchase the freehold from the local municipality and provides a high quality warehouse, office and mezzanine space with 36 loading bays covering over 43,000 square metres. The building has modern specifications such as twelve metre eaves, a floor load capacity of 5 tons per square metre, LED lighting and will have solar panels installed on the roof making this a very sustainable investment.
The warehouse has an attractive income profile and will be fully leased to logistics operator A.G. van der Helm Vastgoed Moerdijk B.V. on a ten year CPI indexed lease. This property will be the headquarters for the company which has a long 25 year history in the area.
The asset is centrally located within the Randstad region, the most densely populated area in the Netherlands, close to the cities of the Hague and Rotterdam with access to the A4 connecting Den Hoorn with the port of Rotterdam and Schiphol airport. Thanks to its urban location the site has attracted strong demand from third-party logistics and last-mile delivery operators such as PostNL and DHL.
Evert Castelein, the Company's Fund Manager, commented:
"The logistics sector remains a compelling asset class thanks to strong market fundamentals, especially in the most liquid part of the market where we have positioned the portfolio.
Strong demand from investors continues and the lack of modern facilities for logistics companies should support values and capital growth, especially with greater planning restrictions over new developments, as is the case in the Netherlands.
Completion of this latest property purchase will bring the portfolio to thirteen assets in total spread across five countries and I am very happy to have been able to add this brand new build to the portfolio. The Netherlands, where we will have exposure for almost 50% of the portfolio, is seen as the gateway to the Western European market thanks to its strategic location in Europe with the port of Rotterdam, the largest port in Europe, and Schiphol airport playing an important role in serving cross-border and domestic supply chains.
With the quality of our real estate and its locations, combined with the longer indexed leases and size of the investments, we believe that we have positioned the portfolio firmly in the most liquid part of the logistics market and these characteristics give us confidence for generating a durable income stream and value accretion for our shareholders.
Investment demand in the logistics sector remains strong. Based on healthy fundamentals, we believe that the medium to long term outlook for the sector remains very favourable. Despite some headwinds from economic output in certain areas, the structural shifts in consumption patterns and overall demand drivers remain supportive, while construction levels are relatively low. We continue to see a healthy pipeline of deal flow which we apply our stringent quality criteria against and hope to announce a further agreement to purchase an asset in Spain shortly."
For further information:
Aberdeen Standard Fund Managers Limited
0207 463 6000
Luke Mason
Gary Jones
Investec Bank plc
0207 597 4000
Will Barnett
Neil Brierley
Alice Douglas
Dominic Waters
Denis Flanagan
David Yovichic
Notes to Editors
Aberdeen Standard European Logistics Income PLC is a UK investment trust with a premium listing on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange. The Company invests in European logistics real estate to achieve its objective of providing its shareholders with a regular and attractive level of income return together with the potential for long term income and capital growth. The Company aims to invest in a portfolio of assets diversified by both geography and tenant throughout Europe, predominantly targeting well-located assets at established distribution hubs and within population centres.
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