Denver-based ProLogis today said it paid more than $1 billion in cash and stock for a leading European developer of distribution centers.
ProLogis, the world’s largest owner, manager and developer of distribution facilities, paid $581 million in cash and the remainder in stock for Parkridge.
It’s the largest acquisition ProLogis has made since it bought Catellus for $5.3 billion in 2005.
The deal includes:
More than 800 acres that can support up to 15 million square feet of new development with an estimated completion value of $2.25 billion.
Parkridge’s United Kingdom logistics development business, which has 10 industrial projects totaling 5.2 million square feet under construction.
New operations in western Europe focused on development in Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands and Spain.
Parkridge’s 50 percent interest in a central European logistics development joint venture that controls land positions supporting more than 5.2 million square feet of industrial space and has an additional 4.5 million square feet under construction.
“Central Europe is to western Europe much like Mexico is to the U.S.,” said Walt Rakowich, president and chief operating officer of ProLogis. “There is low-cost labor in (central) Europe. With manufacturing moving, it’s creating more need for distribution space, but it’s not easy to find land in central Europe.”
In a separate deal, Parkridge’s joint-venture partner agreed to sell its 50 percent interest in the central European joint venture for $449 million, including $320 million of debt to be paid down at closing.
As part of the deal, ProLogis also acquired a 25 percent interest in Parkridge’s non-industrial real estate operations, including two mixed-use development projects in the UK; a retail warehousing development business focused on markets in the UK, France and Spain and a rapidly expanding retail development business in central Europe.
ProLogis has had retail and mixed-use operations since it merged with Catellus.
“After we got into it, we began to see we had a lot of customer synergies,” Rakowich said. “Wal-Mart would take big-box retail as well as a warehouse. We were intrigued by it.
“Increasingly, to find industrial land out in the marketplace, it helps to have a background in infrastructure and mixed-use development as well.”
Staff writer Margaret Jackson can be reached at 303-954-1473 or at mjackson@denverpost.com
