Singapore-listed Aims Apac Reit (AA Reit) has agreed to acquire Woolworths Headquarters property, located in New South Wales, Australia for A$463.25 million (appr. S$454.0 million) from Inmark Asset Management.
The property, fully leased to Woolworths, the largest supermarket retailer in Australia, will be acquired at an initial net property income (NPI) yield of 5.17%.
“This proposed acquisition will strengthen AA Reit’s foothold in Sydney’s resilient business park market. The asset sits on a rare nine-hectare freehold land, within the Norwest Business Park, with good connectivity and direct access to the Sydney CBD. The precinct is also home to a thriving community of established domestic and multinational corporations such as Australia Post, Resmed, IBM and Optus and data centres for the Reserve Bank of Australia and Commonwealth Bank of Australia,” said George Wang, the manager’s chairman.
”Furthermore, this acquisition will be DPU accretive and will provide AA Reit with long-term income stability, through the long lease term and fixed annual escalation,” he added.
The Woolworths HQ property is a corporate campus comprising of three inter-connecting buildings, housing A-grade office accommodation, a data centre operation, and amenities.
The property was constructed in 2005 and has a total site area of 90,010 square metres, with a total net lettable area (NLA) of 44,972 square metres.
Aims Apac Reit said the current NLA provides for significant development potential to circa 180,000 sqm in line based on the maximum allowable gross floor area.
Since its construction in 2005, the property has undergone several upgrades and improvements. More recently, a multi-storey carpark was constructed in 2016 providing over 1,000 additional car parking spaces. Woolworths have committed over A$50 million on office fit outs, foyer refurbishment, and other amenities.
New solar panels were also recently installed across the building roof area, which provides the property with a renewable energy source and aligns with AA Reit’s commitment to incorporating ESG factors into its strategy and operations, the company said.
Located 35 kilometres northwest of Sydney CBD, at Norwest Business Park, the property comes with ample parking space, bearing 3,120 parking lots and is well-connected between two metro stations (Norwest and Bella Vista). It is also within proximity to key motorways.