Business Forum • 9 December, 2024 at 2:27 PM
NEPI Rockcastle, the largest owner, developer and manager of shopping centers in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), has acquired the Silesia City Center shopping center in Katowice (Poland) for €405 million. This represents one of the most significant retail commercial transactions to take place in the region in recent years.
The property is located in the province of Silesia in southern Poland and was previously owned by a consortium of Allianz, Kamsa Luxco and Cura. The shopping center, with a total lettable area of more than 88,400 sqm, occupies a dominant position in Katowice, one of Poland's most economically powerful cities, where the average per capita spending is 35% higher than the national average.
The investment was mainly financed by a successful €300m capital increase in October 2024 by NEPI Rockcastle Rockcastle. This transaction comes on the heels of the acquisition of the Magnolia Park shopping center, located in southwestern Poland (Wroclaw), which took place in September and was, at the time, the largest transaction by value completed for a single property in the CEE region since early 2022.
Silesia City Center is performing strongly financially, and this value is forecasted to increase as the property integrates into NEPI Rockcastle's Rockcastle portfolio, the largest in the CEE region, and as asset management initiatives are implemented.
"We are pleased with the confidence that NEPI Rockcastle's investors have placed in the management team during the recent capital increase. We believe that we have repaid this trust with the acquisition of Silesia City Center, which continues our development strategy. This high-quality shopping center has a dominant position in Katowice, one of the largest and most prosperous cities in Poland. We are confident that by leveraging NEPI Rockcastle's expertise in shopping center management, we will generate sustainable growth in the value of this investment," said Rüdiger Dany, CEO of NEPI Rockcastle.
Silesia City Center enjoys a key position in the Katowice region and is strategically located in the city, directly serving an area of more than 280,000 inhabitants within a 15-minute drive as well as a regional area of almost 2.2 million people within a 45-minute drive. The center offers excellent visibility and easy access by both public and personal transportation.
The shopping center is 98.4% leased and its main tenants include Cinema City, Half Price, H&M, Kaufland, Kaufland, Media Markt, Primark, Reserved, TK Maxx and Zara.
The Katowice region is one of the most industrialized and urbanized in Europe. The city has become an important modern center for business services or areas such as research and development, hosting the headquarters of technology companies, while heavy industry still plays a major role in the region's economy.