17th Jan 2008 13:00
British Land Co PLC17 January 2008 PREF TO SELL A €300M PORTFOLIO TO HENDERSON'S HERALD FUND PREF, the closed-end European out-of-town retail property fund part-owned andadvised by British Land, has exchanged contracts with HERALD, the HendersonEuropean Retail Property Fund, for the sale of five European retail parks, aswell as 50% of PREF's stake in the Spanish regional shopping centre, NuevaCondomina in Murcia. The retail parks, located in Italy, Belgium and Switzerland, are being acquiredfor a consideration of €154 million, reflecting a combined net yield of 5.2%.The stake within Nueva Condomina, which represents 41.25% of the whole (asBritish Land directly owns 17.5%) is being sold for €143 million which reflectsa net initial yield of 4.5%. Valentine Beresford, Director, BL European Fund Management LLP said: "This offmarket sale by PREF to HERALD is a win-win for both sides insofar as we are ableto crystallise some healthy returns to our investors on properties acquired overthe last four years. It boosts our available buying firepower from a previous€200 million to circa €500 million, ready for selective opportunistic purchasesthat we feel will arise from prevailing economic conditions in the forthcomingyear. It also enables PREF to focus on its core countries while reducing theFund's exposure to a large, single asset. The transaction plays to HERALD'sreturn criteria and is in line with their strategy to expand in Europe." British Land retains its 17.5% direct holding in the Nueva Condomina jointventure while PREF (40% owned by British Land) and HERALD will each own 41.25%.Henderson European Retail Property Fund Management will have a joint assetmanagement role with BL European Fund Management in running the Murcia ShoppingCentre and Retail Park. HERALD Fund Manager, Paddy Bingham, commented: "This acquisition followsHERALD's second closing in November last year and brings the value of the Fundto over €1 billion putting it firmly on course to meet its target value of €1.5billion. The portfolio fits the Fund's strategy as these are well-locatedproperty investments with strong asset management potential." Cushman Wakefield advised PREF and CB Richard Ellis acted for HERALD. The retail parks total 70,527m2: • Parco Commerciale Navile, Bologna, Italy - 13,240 m2 • Parc de L'Hydrion, Arlon, Belgium - 31,039 m2 • Hedera Retail Park, Roeselare, Belgium - 7,174 m2 • Grosses Terres Retail Park, Etoy, Switzerland - 6,746 m2 • Champs Fleuris Retail Park, Matran, Switzerland - 12,328 m2 Nueva Condomina, Murcia, South East Spain, is a 120,000 m2 scheme encompassing a 60,200 m2 two-storey enclosed shopping centre and a 44,400 m2 retail park. Theshopping centre includes a 15 screen multiplex and a 13,700 m2 Hypermarket withenclosed parking for 6,500 cars. British Land and PREF jointly agreed toacquire the scheme in March 2007. DATE: Thursday, 17 January, 2008 Ends Notes to Editors: About PREF PREF (The Pillar Retail Europark Fund) is a seven year closed-end fund createdin 2004 investing in out-of-town retail parks in the Eurozone. PREF is advisedby BL European Fund Management LLP. PREF's Iberian-based assets are: Portugal - Portimao Retail Park, Portimao;Aveiro Retail Park, Aveiro; Sintra Retail Park, Lisbon, Lima Retail Park, Lima.Spain - Nassica Retail & Leisure Park, Madrid and Nueva Condomina, Murcia.Outside Iberia, PREF also holds interests in Italy and France. For further information about PREF or British Land, visit www.Britishland.com. About HERALD The HERALD Fund (Henderson European Retail Property Fund) is a closed-endedLuxembourg Fonds Commun de Placement (FCP) for institutional investors that waslaunched in December 2005 by Henderson Global Investors. The Fund specialisesin retail warehouses, shopping centres and city centre retail investments, withan investment focus on Eurozone countries, particularly Spain, Italy, France andGermany. For further information about Henderson Property and Henderson Global Investorsvisit www.Henderson.com. Media Enquires: PREF: Financial Dynamics Dido Laurimore, Tel: +44 20 7831 3113 British Land: Laura De Vere, Tel: +44 20 7467 2920/Mobile: + 44 (0)7739 292920 Henderson Global Investors: Richard Acworth, Tel: +44 20 7818 3010 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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