Savills IM buys Decathlon logistics platform in Zaragoza

Savills Investment Management has invested €40 million to purchase a logistics hub in the region of Aragon on behalf of its European Logistics Fund 2 (ELF 2).

Zaragoza is the capital city for the region of Aragon: the 3^rd wealthiest region in Spain (excluding Madrid & the Catalonia). It is also the 5^th largest city in Spain with a population of 666,880 and a the Aragon region has a population of 1,308,728 (INE 2018). Zaragoza is also an important logistics hub benefitting from its location between Madrid and Barcelona and companies like Inditex, BSH, Decathlon and DHL have chosen the province to establish their Iberian logistic platforms as it has excellent transport links and is home to Spain’s 3^rd busiest airport for cargo operations, after Madrid and Barcelona. Zaragoza also has an AVE high speed train linking it to the country’s two largest cities in less than 80 minutes.

Fully let to sports goods retailer, Decathlon, the property is located in Zaragoza’s Plaza Logistica area and has a GLA of over 50,500m² on a 90,000m² plot of land. The property was built in 2011 with an average height of 12 metres and is divided into two separate areas including one with six modules and another with two, connected by a reception and office building.

Fernando Ramírez de Haro, Managing Director of Savills Investment Management for Spain and Portugal, says: “Our investment aim from now until the end of 2019 is to focus on building a €1.2 billion portfolio in the Iberian Peninsula and we believe that logistics assets will be key for this growth strategy. This Grade A logistics platform is one of Europe’s prime logistics centres, making it a unique buying opportunity.”

Daniel Hohenthanner, ELF 2 fund manager adds: “We are delighted to add another asset in the Iberian market to the ELF 2 portfolio. The location of the platform, coupled with the quality of its tenant, make this asset ideal to expand the portfolio. I’m sure that the sector will present more off-market opportunities of this sort that add value to our portfolio.”

Launched in 2015, ELF 2 invests in Grade A quality logistics properties in core, liquid European markets. The fund was heavily oversubscribed at launch with equity commitments of €560 million against an initial target size of €250 million. It has a diversified portfolio of 21 assets spanning six countries and has achieved a total return over 7.5 per cent per annum, significantly ahead of its original target. ELF2’s portfolio has grown to an investment volume of around €680 million.

Savills IM was advised by the legal advisors of Eversheds and the technical advisors of Savills Aguirre Newman throughout the Plaza Logistica transaction.