The real estate fund UAB Eika Real Estate Fund (EREF), managed by the fund management company UAB Eika Asset Management (EAM), has completed a transaction to acquire a shopping center in Riga, the fund’s first investment in neighboring Latvia. The shopping center has three anchor tenants – Maxima, Pepco and Lemon Gym. The transaction amount is not disclosed.
The shopping center is located at Grostono St. 1, in the Skanste district, which is currently the fastest developing district in Riga and is planned to soon become the capital’s central business district (CBD or central business district), just a few kilometers from the old town.
The 7,400 sq m shopping center has almost 500 parking spaces in the parking lot next to the store and in the adjacent multi-storey car park. In addition, the acquisition allows for the planning of an additional 7,000 sq m of development on the same plot. The premises in the shopping center are currently 99 percent leased under long-term contracts.
Viktorija Orkinė, CEO of EAM, says that after the business center in Slovakia, this is the fund management company’s second investment abroad. “It makes sense to develop operations in all Baltic countries, which is why we purposefully pursued this step. The investment in this shopping center is safe, as it generates a constant flow of rental income, but at the same time, it has the potential for further development in the actively developing business, entertainment and residential district of the Latvian capital, Skanste,” shares V. Orkinė.
The shopping center was acquired from the Estonian company Metro Capital, which was advised by Newsec. The transaction was implemented with the assistance of the law firm Fort, financial and tax consultants TaxLink Latvia, the technical team Stav, and the necessary financing was provided by OP Corporate Bank.
The Grostono St. shopping center in Riga is EREF’s eighth investment. In addition to it, EREF’s investment portfolio includes the Highway business center and Audi and Volkswagen car dealerships in Vilnius, the DHL Lietuva terminal in the Vilnius Airport area, the Tamro logistics center of the BENU pharmacy operator in Kaunas FEZ, the ViaCon Baltic manufacturing center in Kaunas district, and the Tesla Business Center in Slovakia.
EREF is the second of three real estate funds managed by EAM, investing in commercial properties. EREF invests in classic commercial properties – office buildings, shopping centers and logistics or light industrial properties in the CEE region. The fund is intended for informed investors, and together with external investors, the capital of the EIKA group is also invested.