Geneva, July 16th 2019
AB Alternative SICAV-SIF has just completed its fifth acquisition in the Netherlands, with the purchase of an outstanding office building in Utrecht. The asset is centrally located in an important business park of Utrecht and offers excellent connections to the rest of the country.
Utrecht is the fourth largest city in the Netherlands and is part of the central Randstad area, which includes Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht. The city has an excellent business climate and benefits from the most highly educated labour force in the country.
The property has a GIY of 6.44 % and is fully let to AM Holding, a company in the construction and development sectors and part of the BAM Group. The company is involved in major projects, such as the Amsterdam Arena football stadium, completed in 1996. In 2018, the BAM Group generated c. €7.2bn turnover with an EBITDA of €178m and employed more than 20k people worldwide; it is listed on the Amsterdam stock exchange.
The property consists of 2’933 LFA sqm and 58 parking spaces. We acquired the asset with a 10+5 year lease term, ending on December 31st, 2028, allowing for full comfort and time to build a solid relationship with the tenant and exploring opportunities to make the property yet more sustainable.
The building is the first Dutch office asset holding both a WELL and a BREEAM certification, which represent the highest international standards for sustainable buildings. The WELL certification focuses exclusively on the ways that buildings, and everything in them, can improve our comfort, drive better choices and generally enhance our health and wellness, while the BREEAM-In Use Excellent certification assesses the asset’s environmental, social and economic sustainability performance. These two “green” certificates are becoming more and more popular and are now included in some investor’s due diligence requirements, thus enhancing the overall property value.
This acquisition was financed through both equity and new debt. The fund secured the financing from Postbank – a subsidiary of Deutsche Bank – with a very competitive interest rate.
The deal was originated and advised by Savills Investment Management in the Netherlands. On the legal side, CMS, Volcrick & Associates, HVG Law LLP advised the Fund for this transaction. Savills Investment Management will be responsible for the asset management of the property.
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