Investors interested in a €400m portfolio being sold by Norwegian bank DnB NOR in Norway are being offered financing by the bank to help complete the deal.
At a time when credit market problems have curtailed the ability to raise finance, DnB NOR is understood to have said it will finance the buyer to the full level of debt financing.
The portfolio of 20 office and retail assets is 95% let to the Norwegian bank and has an average vacancy rate of 1%. It has rental income of €27m pa and a total leasable area of 170,000 m2. It is estimated to be worth around €400m.
It is expected to receive strong interest from international players, who often miss out on Norwegian assets because they tend to be sold to Nordic investors off market.
The portfolio of core assets is thought to be too big for most wealthy Norwegian investors. However, it is widely expected that the portfolio will at some stage be split up and that many individual assets could be sold to private Norwegian investors.
First-round bids are due by the end of October with final bids expected to take place in early December. DnB NOR Næringsmegling and Catella Corporate Finance are advising.
