Union Investment has acquired the Kållered Retail Park in Gothenburg for the open-ended retail property fund UniImmo: Deutschland. The property covers an area of approximately 19,400 square metres. The purchase price for the transaction, in which Ingka Centres acted as the seller, amounts to around EUR 80 million. Ingka Centres is a company within the Ingka Group, which also includes IKEA Retail and Ingka Investments.
This acquisition marks Union Investment's renewed activity on the buyer's side for its open-ended retail property funds, following a roughly three-year phase in which securing liquidity was prioritised. For special funds, the company has already been active in the acquisition business since the end of 2023. The strategic realignment now enables the targeted reinvestment of proceeds from profitable sales into UniImmo: Deutschland, in order to diversify its portfolio and strengthen its resilience.
Strategic Alignment and Portfolio Strengthening
Karim Esch, Member of the Management Board and Chief Investment Officer of Union Investment Real Estate GmbH, commented on the acquisition. He highlighted that predominantly profitable sales had created the basis for actively shaping the new market cycle in the interest of investors. Reinvesting a portion of the proceeds into UniImmo: Deutschland is intended to broaden the fund's positioning with a newly built retail park and enhance its resilience.
Esch added that further targeted acquisitions for UniImmo: Deutschland are being examined, while at the same time the development of cash inflows remains a focus and stabilisation is being sought. Sales opportunities continue to be actively utilised. UniImmo: Deutschland has a fund volume of approximately EUR 15 billion, making it Union Investment's largest property fund.
Felix Brandt, Senior Investment Manager at Union Investment, emphasised how well the Kållered Retail Park fits the company's investment strategy. The fully let retail park is located on a highly frequented traffic artery in Scandinavia, within an economically strong region of Sweden. Its proximity to an IKEA store is considered advantageous for the retail location.
- —Focus on local supply.
- —High energy efficiency standard.
- —Use of renewable energies from photovoltaics and geothermal energy.
- —Contribution to achieving the fund's sustainability goals.
Karoline Nader-Gräff, interim Head of Global Expansion and Development at Ingka Centres, highlighted the attractiveness of high-quality retail locations that adapt to customer needs. The Kållered Retail Park represents a long-term attractive investment due to its tenant mix and solid fundamental data. She expressed her pleasure regarding the cooperation with Union Investment.
Legal advice to Union Investment was provided by Gernandt & Danielsson, tax advice by KPMG, and technical due diligence by Drees & Sommer. Panreal from Gothenburg acted as the buyer-side transaction advisor. On the seller's side, Mannheimer Swartling handled legal advice and EY provided tax advice. JLL brokered the transaction.
