Sirius CEO Andrew Coombs.
Sirius Real Estate, owner and operator of branded business and industrial parks in Germany and the UK, has completed over €100 million (R2 billion) in acquisitions in the UK and Germany, and further deals are in the pipeline.
The company said yesterday that it had completed on four notarised acquisitions in Germany and the UK: Vantage Point Business Village in Gloucestershire, UK, acquired for €56.4m; a business park in Köln, acquired for €20m; a multi-tenanted business park in Göppingen acquired for €19.8m; and an industrial park and land parcel in Klipphausen, near Dresden, acquired for €13.75m.
Sirius’s share price fell 1% to R22.50 yesterday morning, but its price has risen 25.3% over 12 months.
“We are continuing to make good progress on our acquisition pipeline, following six months of active investments in Germany and the UK, and are in advanced discussions on additional opportunities, leaving us well placed to support the long-term growth of the group,” CEO Andrew Coombs said in a statement.
The acquisitions would add more than 139 000 square metres of mainly industrial space to the BizSpace portfolio, and just under 72 000 square metres of predominantly industrial space to their German portfolio.
The acquisitions were made using the proceeds of November’s €165m capital raise.
“These acquisitions present the company with a number of value-add opportunities to grow income and value across four strategic locations in Germany and the UK where we already have an established presence,” Coombs said.
He said all four of the assets were in “desirable micro-locations”, and benefited from good transport networks and connectivity. They were also all located in close proximity to other Sirius or BizSpace sites, with the Köln business park to be the fourth asset owned and operated by the company in and around Köln, with the Göppingen site the 10th asset in the area surrounding Stuttgart.
Separately, Coombs said they had completed the disposal of a light industrial asset in Stoke-on-Trent, UK, for £3m. The asset, which comprises just over 5 118 square metres of industrial space, was sold at a 1% premium to the last reported book value and deemed non-core to the business going forwards.
He said these acquisitions were bought at attractive yields, and the assets aligned well with the strategy of curating a range of flexible out-of-town business and industrial products, with the Gloucestershire acquisition expected to be particularly transformational for the BizSpace platform.
Additionally, the disposal of the Stoke site at a modest premium to book value, allowed them to use returns from this asset to recycle into new opportunities.
BUSINESS REPORT