1. Spain: Abu Dhabi Wealth Fund Buys 17-Hotel Portfolio
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and its Coral Reef subsidiary closed on its acquisition of a 17-property portfolio of hotels in Spain, following clearance by the European Union’s competition regulators.
Brokerage JLL, which represented the wealth fund, called the deal a “landmark sale of the largest hotel portfolio in Spain” as the seller, Spain’s Equity Inmuebles fund, garnered a price around €600 million or $647.5 million. “The strong interest from global investors, particularly from the Middle East, who accounted for nearly 50% of transaction volume in Spain as of August 2023, underlines the resilient and appealing nature of the hospitality sector,” JLL Senior Managing Director Patrick Saade said.
2. UK: Birmingham Office Campus Fetches Big Price
Investment firms Praxis and Veld Capital purchased a prominent Birmingham, England, office campus for £125 million, in the United Kingdom’s largest office deal outside of London this year by total price.
The prime 14.9-acre campus, bought from HSBC Alternative Investments, is one of Birmingham’s leading business and leisure destinations and among the United Kingdom’s best-known office developments. The campus includes a ground-floor leisure space, multi-story parking garage, retail arcade, four-star hotel, art gallery and aquarium. The property is 90% occupied with tenants including Deutsche Bank, Lloyds and Deloitte.
3. Germany: Planned ‘Green’ Data Center Would Be Among Europe’s Largest
London-based Virtus Data Centres plans build a €3 billion data center with a capacity of 300 megawatts in Wustermark near Berlin, which would be among the largest eco-friendly facilities of its kind in Europe.
Developers said the project is located near an existing substation and would benefit from electrical coupling with some of the largest contiguous onshore wind farms in the country. Virtus plans to provide waste heat from the data center to the municipality of Wustermark. The project would eventually span 350,000 square meters and is expected to be operational by 2026, subject to regional government approvals.
4. France: Student Housing Provider Expands Footprint
Apartment developer Student Factory, a subsidiary of Vinci Immoblier, opened four sites in France totaling more than 500 units, in response to the country’s growing need for student housing.
The new locations add to nine Student Factory residences previously opened in the Paris region. “In large cities, where there are many higher education establishments, young people encounter obvious difficulties in finding accommodation,” Student Factory officials said in a statement.
5. Canada: More Electric Vehicle Battery Production Coming to Quebec
Volta Energy Solutions plans to make copper foil components for electric vehicle batteries at a plant in Granby, Quebec, as the province competes with other Canadian and United States regions to lure companies tied to the fast-growing EV ecosystem.
Volta, a subsidiary of South Korea-based Solus Advanced Materials, is expected to receive $150 million in government subsidies from the province for a $750 million plant expected to create 260 jobs at a site about 50 miles southeast of Montreal. The projects joins other previously announced electric vehicle and battery manufacturing plants planned for Quebec and Ontario.
6. US: Yellow Seeks to Walk Away From Truck Facility Leases
Yellow Corp. is seeking court permission to abandon at least three dozen leases at properties in the United States and Canada, as the trucking company works its way through Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings.
Yellow is looking to walk away from leases at its headquarters in Nashville, Tennessee, a regional office tower in Overland Park, Kansas, and several other truck terminal, office and warehouse locations totaling 37 properties, according to court filings. The nearly century-old company is seeking to sell other properties to pay creditors after shutting operations last month and laying off about 30,000 employees.
This report was compiled from CoStar’s news publications in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, France and Germany.