18 September 2015

M&G and Standard Life agree warehouse and retail park investments

M&G Real Estate is to fund the construction of 400,000 sq ft of distribution space at Harworth Estates' Logistics North development in Bolton – the largest industrial development under construction in the north-west of England.

David Crowley, director, logistics and industrial at M&G Real Estate, said, "There is a limited supply of grade A warehouses of this size in the region, and with tenant demand remaining resilient and rental growth evident due to limited building supply, this investment provides us with access to prime, well-specified and located assets.

"It also supports our continued strategy to selectively increase our exposure to the sector across the country, providing the long-term investment that will help drive economic growth."

Earlier this year M&G Real Estate announced funding of 480,800 sq ft of new warehouses at Optimus Park in Leicestershire. In the last year the firm has invested around £400m ($624m) in Manchester and Greater Manchester and has also provided close to £100m for the extensive development of Central Square in Leeds – the first speculative office scheme in Leeds in eight years.

M&G is a part of Prudential, which has over £500bn of assets under management, with more than £50bn invested in UK infrastructure and property.

Separately, Standard Life Investments' Europe Real Estate Club has bought the Länna Retail Park in Stockholm for a price said to be €50m-€60m ($57-68m). German financier pbb provided a €29.5m facility for the purchase. The Club had raised €300m of equity from global investors at its close in December 2014.