The National Asset Management Agency’s €2.4bn (£2bn) Project Jewel loan portfolio has been bought by a joint venture between Hammerson and insurer Allianz, giving the duo control of Dublin shopping centre, Dundrum.
They fought off competition from Hines, fronting the Kuwait Investment Authority, with a €1.9bn bid.
The 1.5m sq ft Dundrum is valued at €1.2bn. Hammerson and Allianz will each take a 50% share of the loan secured against it and the neighbouring Dundrum Village development site.
The portfolio also includes 50% of loans held against the Ilac Centre in central Dublin and The Pavilions Centre in Swords, which Hammerson has bought on its own.
The deal sees Hammerson commit €1.2bn and expand its portfolio outside of the UK and France. The price paid reflects an initial yield of 4%.
The loans are secured against assets owned by Joe O’Reilly’s Chartered Land. “We are entering into this to acquire the assets, we are not a bank,” said David Atkins, chief executive of Hammerson. “We don’t rule anything out for how we take that forward and Chartered Land’s future involvement.”
Initial finance for the deal has come from a new £1bn revolving credit facility – which has raised Hammerson’s company-wide gearing from 33% to 40%. This will subsequently be replaced by longer-term debt. The company also intends to help finance the purchase through the sale of more than £500m in assets.
Atkins said these disposals will come from “our smaller French assets and retail parks”.
Of these assets £200m are up for sale with a further £300m to come in the next few months.
mike.cobb@estatesgazette.com
