Offensive in progress

Poznań adventure enters next chapter

In October 2013, TriGranit and its partners Europa Capital and the Polish State Railways (PKP) finished the development of the Poznań City Center shopping centre next to the main railway station in Poznań, which was sold to a consortium comprising Resolution Property and ECE Projektmanagement soon after. The half-a-year old building then changed owners again in March 2014. However, TriGranit’s adventure in the capital of Wielkopolska province did not end with this transaction. The PKP and its real estate arm Xcity Investment decided to continue working with the Hungarian investor. This time on the development of a property located at ul. Dworcowa 1 – the old Dworzec Główny station next to the Poznań City Center shopping centre. The partners are planning to establish a joint company to carry out the project and are now just waiting for a decision from the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK). “PKP, Xcity Investment and TriGranit are parties to an investment contract for the third stage of the project near the Poznań Główny station. This is one of the development projects to be carried out by the PKP group as part of a joint venture with a private partner,” Maciej K. Król, the president of the board at Xcity Investment, told ‘Eurobuild CEE’. “We are planning to build a hotel, which would be focused on passenger services, as well as three office buildings on a plot neighbouring the station in Poznań. The project involves the construction of a leasable area of 30,000 sqm. The design work is currently in progress and we are carrying it out together with PKP and the city authorities. We want to implement a concept that will combine public space and business,” Árpád Török, CEO of TriGranit Development Corporation, told us. When asked about the details of the project he revealed: “We are planning to build a three-star chain hotel with around 130 rooms. Negotiations with a few interested hotel operators are now taking place. I cannot disclose any more details,” he added.

Kraków continued

Apart from the project in Poznań, TriGranit is also continuing with its B4B development – an office park on ul. Puszkarska in Kraków, near the Bonarka City Center mall. Building ‘E’ (10,000 sqm) has just been opened and the company is already preparing for the construction of the next building, ‘G’. “In Kraków there is still demand for modern office space. We are receiving such signals not only from our current tenants but also companies that intend to open their head offices in the city. If the trend is sustained, the construction of another office building in B4B could start as soon as Q4 2015. The construction of buildings ‘H’, ‘I’, ‘J’ and ‘K’ is subject to market conditions. We are planning to build one facility per year. B4B will eventually comprise eleven office buildings with a combined area of 100,000 sqm, built in an investment of EUR 200 mln,” claims the head of TriGranit Development Corporation. The B4B complex currently includes four facilities with a combined area of 35,000 sqm.

That’s not all, folks

“The total value of our completed projects in Poland amounts to EUR 700 mln and the area comes to 400,000 sqm. We can still see huge opportunities in terms of the development on the Polish market. I’m referring to the construction of shopping centres in regional
towns with more than 500,000 inhabitants as well as office buildings in some of the largest Polish cities. TriGranit’s schedule on the Polish market currently involves EUR 500 mln of projects, including two retail projects with a combined area of 160,000 sqm and eight office buildings offering a leasable area of app. 135,000 sqm. The implementation of the plans will take us three to five years,” emphasised Árpád Török. The president of TriGranit Development Corporation is slightly less forthcoming when it comes to selling the properties owned by the company, however. “TriGranit as a developer and manager has been systematically monitoring the functioning and results of its assets. The company continues to receive offers to buy individual buildings. However, any decision to sell is subject to the project’s maturity and our expectations regarding the market situation,” insisted Árpád Török.