Investment &amp; finance

CEE REGION In Q2 2014, the volume of commercial real estate investment across the Central European markets (Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania) amounted to EUR 1.14 bln, which represented a 75 pct increase y-o-y, a new report by Cushman & Wakefield shows.

BGK to provide majority of funding for Bałtyk

08 July 2014

POLAND Bałtyk, an office and retail building in Poznań, will be mainly funded by the Polish Investments Programme, coordinated by Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego (BGK). A portion of the funding will also come from a European initiative supporting urban development, Jessica.

Okam eyes large land plot in Praga

07 July 2014

POLAND The Polish-Israeli developer Okam is interested in purchasing a 4.3-h plot of land in Warsaw district of Praga. Located on ul. Szwedzka, the parcel has formerly housed Pollena Uroda’s manufacturing facilities. It could now accommodate nearly 1,000 apartments and some office space.

Blackstone acquires CEE logistics portfolio

07 July 2014

Eurobuild CEE

CEE REGION The US real estate giant Blackstone has acquired six logistics and distribution parks, located across Poland and the Czech Republic, from Pramerica Real Estate Investors. Meanwhile, Blackstone's logistics platform, Logicor, has bought a portfolio of European logistics facilities, including a Hungarian warehouse.

Wikana exits commercial projects

04 July 2014

POLAND In order to better concentrate on residential construction, the Lublin-based developer Wikana, has sold its commercial property in Krasnobród for PLN 4.2 mln. The mini-mall housed a Biedronka store and a few smaller retailers. The new owner is a private person, specialized in running retail facilities.

Mirbud wins two new contracts

POLAND Mirbud, the Polish construction company, will carry out two new projects worth a gross total of PLN 50 mln.

Wilanów development gets EUR 61 mln funding

POLAND Capital Park, the investor of the Royal Wilanów office project, located at the junction of ul. Klimczaka and ul. Przyczółkowa in Warsaw, has got a loan from PKO BP to further develop the project. “We have reached the required level of commercialization of the facility, and met the requirements over our deposit, which has paved the way for us to get the first tranche of funding. The total amount of the loan granted by PKO Bank Polski amounts to EUR 61.1 mln,” informed Michał Majewski, treasury manager of Capital Park.

Sołowow selling off Echo Investment?

Ewa Andrzejewska

POLAND Michał Sołowow, the founder and biggest shareholder in Echo Investment, has put his nearly 46 pct stake in the Kielce-based company up for sale. The shares were offered for sale by London branch of Citi. Neither Echo Investment nor Sołowow himself have commented on the news. While Sołowow didn’t find time to answer our questions for over a week, we have confirmed with three independent market sources that the offering is now on.

Octava buys office buildings, Arka for liquidation

POLAND Octava Fizan, the Polish non-public assets closed investment fund, has finalized the purchase of six office buildings from Arka BZ WBK, the real estate closed investment fund that is set to be liquidated. The office buildings which changed their owner include: FDS Plaza and Light House in Warsaw, Quattro Forum in Wrocław, Winogrady Business Center in Poznań, Red Tower in Łódź and Alfa Plaza in Tricity. Their total leasable area amounts to app. 48,300 sqm.

Capital Park plans PLN 200 mln buying spree

30 June 2014

POLAND Capital Park generated PLN 3.2 mln in net profit in the first quarter – app. PLN 9 mln lower than the figure last year. The group is continuing its acquisition policy and is planning purchases worth as much as PLN 200 mln this year.

Ghelamco finds buyer for three office buildings

30 June 2014

POLAND American fund SOF-IX International Holdings, which is owned by Starwood Capital Group, is to buy three office buildings developed by Ghelamco. The properties changing hands are Katowice Business Point and two office complexes in Warsaw – Łopuszańska Business Park and T-Mobile Office Park on ul. Marynarska.

Warimpex disposes of another luxury hotel in Prague

02 July 2014

Agata Kłapeć

CZECH REPUBLIC Vienna-headquartered property developer Warimpex has sold its last five-star hotel in Prague, the Savoy Hotel, to a private investor, as the company completes the withdrawal from the city’s declining luxury hotel market.

Polish developer to buy Browary Warszawskie?

26 June 2014

POLAND One of the most interesting and largest investment plots in Warsaw’s Wola district will most probably soon be changing hands.

Middle Eastern investors to spend USD 145 bln in Europe

25 June 2014

WORLD/EUROPE Middle Eastern investors are expected to spend USD 180 bln in the world’s commercial real estate markets over the next decade, with 80 pct of it (USD 145 bln) to be allocated in Europe, according to the latest research from global property advisor CBRE.

Vítek merges CPI into GSG

Nathan North
managing editor (English section)

CZECH REPUBLIC Radovan Vítek has decided to merge his Czech real estate investment company CPI Group into GSG Group (formerly Orco Germany), with the intention of further expansion into the European property market.

ING agrees to EUR 93.6 mln financing package for CTP

Nathan North
managing editor (English section)

CZECH REPUBLIC ING bank has agreed to a financing package worth EUR 93.6 mln to Brno-based industrial developer CTP.

Globalworth buys Bucharest plots

ROMANIA Investment company Globalworth Real Estate Investments has bought several plots with a combined area of app. 3 ha at the corner of Dimitrie Pompeiu boulevard and George Constantinescu street in Bucharest.

Baring Vostok buys Etalon shares