Europa Capital, the pan-European real estate investment manager, in partnership with White Star Real Estate, has launched its Central European logistics platform by acquiring a prime 15 hectare site in the Hungarian capital Budapest, on which it will fund the development of park22, an urban logistics park.

The platform, which has a target gross asset value of 150 million euros, will target standing logistics and urban warehousing assets and ground up development opportunities in strong locations across Central Europe.

“Our decision to launch a Central European logistics platform and fund the development of park22 reflect our view that a continuation of urbanisation trends will fuel ongoing demand for logistics space across Central Europe,” says Jason Oram, partner and fund manager at Europa Capital.

“We continue to see strong levels of occupier interest across our pan-European speculative development pipeline and look forward to partnering again with White Star Real Estate, with whom we worked on the development of the Małachowski Square office building in Warsaw, Poland, which we sold successfully in 2018 on behalf of our investors.”

The phased development of park22 will deliver a total of 61,400 square metres of Grade A logistics space across six units, as well as office space, car parking and an extensive landscaped green area.

The scheme, which will target a BREEAM ‘very good’ rating, will feature LED lighting, energy use monitoring and EV charging stations. The building will also be constructed using timber and timber-based materials, whilst the surrounding green area will support biodiversity through the planting of new trees and the installation of bird and bat houses.

Robert Martin, partner and head of investments at Europa Capital, says: “park22 presents an opportunity to invest in a high quality project which offers amenities as well as strong transport links. Budapest is experiencing a shortage of logistics supply, with a vacancy rate of below four per cent, and we believe park22 will prove an attractive location for both third party logistics players and e-commerce businesses. We have been active in the CEE region for a number of years, recently re-entering the Hungarian market with the acquisition of the Akadémia Business Center in Budapest earlier this year.”

Track record

Europa Capital has a long track record of generating attractive returns for investors through investment into the urban light industrial and logistics sector on behalf of its value add and core strategies. In total, Europa Capital has acquired 78 buildings in the sector for a total of 547 million euros since 2018.

This latest investment increases Europa Capital’s logistics development pipeline to around 526,300 square metres across a diverse range of geographies inducing the UK, France, Germany, Hungary and Poland.

Krisztián Barabás, partner of development and operations at White Star Real Estate, adds: “White Star has been an active player in the Hungarian and Central and Eastern European real estate development and management market for decades. We always take into account the latest industry trends and current tenant expectations across our investments and developments and offer real, market-focused solutions.

“In the case of Park22, we have responded to the accelerated growth of online commerce by combining warehousing with office functions in a practical way, all within the boundaries of the capital, with direct motorway access.”