Barings has completed the sale of a 50,409 sq m (circa 542,000 sq ft) logistics asset in Béziers, France, to grocery retailer Lidl for an undisclosed price on behalf of its pan-European logistics joint venture (PELV). The sale is its first disposal in France on behalf of PELV since its inception in 2019.
Barings acquired the asset on a forward-funding arrangement in autumn 2021 and Lidl France will now take over the forward-funding arrangement and carry out significant additional fit-out to match its needs as owner-occupier, with works being done by Pitch (Altarea Logistique).
Guillaume Bieganski, managing director and head of French real estate at Barings, said: “We are disposing of the development to Lidl ahead of plan due to the strength and depth of our network in the investment and occupier markets producing an attractive outcome, despite the challenging economic conditions and with yields moving out. On behalf of both PELV and other European real estate strategies, we are continuing to seek core and value-add assets in prime locations.”
Robert Schneider, managing director and PELV portfolio manager at Barings, added: “This first disposal demonstrates that PELV is outperforming even our original underwriting, reflecting how our local teams and expertise, combined with global research and insights, mean that we are well placed amid the market turbulence. While logistics remains an attractive asset class for PELV and Barings’ other capital sources, we will explore opportunities with an uncompromising approach to location, quality and pricing in our target jurisdictions including France, the UK, Nordics, Spain, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands.”
PELV is a joint venture between a US insurance firm and a Middle Eastern sovereign wealth fund, deploying its capital into diversified (core-plus to value-add) logistics property in prime European markets.
Lidl and Barings were advised by Cushman & Wakefield (broker), Oudot Notaires (notary) and Allen & Overy LLP (lawyer).
