Aviva Investors, the global asset management business of Aviva, has acquired a distribution unit in Hams Hall, in the UK Midlands from Korean investors, for 拢139 mln (鈧�160 mln).
The distribution centre comprises 783,000 ft2 (72,750 m2) of floor space spanning over 50 acres (20 ha), and is let to Sainsbury鈥檚 on a 25-year lease with five-yearly rental reviews linked to increases in RPI.
The vendor was Knight Frank Investment Management, acting for LB Asset Management and their Korean clients.
The site has three structures; a main building which provides ambient and chilled storage facilities; a vehicle maintenance unit; and a resource recovery unit, which provides a waste return facility.
Kris McPhail, director of real estate long income at Aviva Investors, said: 'We are pleased to add this distribution centre to our portfolio.
'Whilst long income assets have performed well over the past year in challenging market conditions, causing some crowding-in for smaller assets, we believe larger properties are better-positioned to deliver positive outcomes.
Coupled with a high-quality and creditworthy tenant, it continues our strategy of seeking prime assets that we believe provide offer best relative value and can provide our investors with attractive levels of long-term, inflation-linked returns.'
Situated near Birmingham and in close proximity to both the M6 toll, M42, M1 and M5 motorways, the park also benefits from Hams Hall鈥檚 Rail Freight Terminal, an intermodal facility connecting the park with deep and short-sea traffic to and from the Felixstowe and Southampton ports, as well as the Channel Tunnel on a daily basis.
Aviva Investors was advised by Cushman and Wakefield.
Alex Braithwaite, senior investment manager, at KFIM said: 'Hams Hall was the first asset that KFIM acquired on behalf of our Korean clients. At the time the shift to online grocery shopping was beginning to accelerate and our strategy was to target strategic distribution units such as this, which would become even more critical to supply and delivery operations.
'The sale of Hams Hall, which generated fierce competition between UK and international purchasers, clearly demonstrates the success of this strategy, delivering risk adjusted returns well in excess of the investors original target rates. Despite Covid, appetite from our Korean clients remain strong, and we continue to seek new opportunities on their behalf.'
