Singapore's Elite Partners Acquires Warehouse In Poland For Over €30M (S$48.6M) From GIC Subsidiary

SINGAPORE, Aug 31, 2020 - (ACN Newswire) - Elite Partners Capital ("Elite Partners" or "Elite") announced today it has acquired a warehouse in Mszczonow, Poland for more than EUR30 million (S$48.6 million) from a subsidiary of Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC. The transaction spearheads its build-up of a portfolio of specialised logistics assets in Europe to address opportunities arising from COVID-19-related disruptions.

Elite, a Singapore-based private equity firm, said its Elite Logistics Fund (the "Fund") acquired the warehouse from GIC's wholly owned P3 Logistics Parks. Headquartered in the Czech Republic, the latter also owns a second logistics hub in the Polish town of Piotrkow.

The 58,500 sqm (629,700 square feet) facility is the largest warehouse in PepsiCo Poland's distribution network, and consolidates the global F&B leader's logistics and warehouse processes, which were previously run out of several different locations across the Central European nation.

The transaction increases Elite's presence in the Mszczonow Park to six buildings, with a total area of over 230,000 sqm (2,476,000 square feet). It follows the acquisition of five buildings in March 2020, which was one of the largest transactions in Poland's logistics sector this year.

Situated south-west of Warsaw, the Mszczonow warehouse is well served by expressways and motorways connecting the Polish capital to Berlin. It is also strategically located just an hour's drive from the Lodz terminal - the main terminal for the Chengdu-Lodz railway, linking Europe to China.

The latest acquisition is the Fund's third since May 2020 and has proceeded despite the market and economic disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Fund is building a portfolio of European assets focusing on specialised warehousing (in particular, for e-commerce fulfilment and food logistics distribution), cold chain logistics as well as logistics infrastructure. Launched in January 2020, the Pan-European fund is targeting such specialised assets in Poland and the United Kingdom - where it already owns eight other properties - amongst other countries in Europe.

Elite Partners believes that recent supply chain disruptions - first due to Brexit, followed by the COVID-19 pandemic since the beginning of 2020 - have opened up new challenges and opportunities for specialised logistics in Europe.

Mr Victor Song, CEO and Managing Director of Elite Partners, said "We are elated by the completion of this acquisition. The dedicated warehouse in Mszczonow is a vital part of our strategy to build up a Pan-European portfolio of specialised logistics assets in Poland and the United Kingdom with specific geographical focus in the key European logistics hubs.

"The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the need to establish dedicated warehouses for sorting and distribution to meet the surge in e-commerce and cold chain to store and distribute food and perishables at a time when more people are working from home. In turn, these require support from specialised logistics infrastructure. Our Fund will cater to all three aspects," added Mr Enoch Tan, Portfolio Director of the Fund.

Mr Tan noted that Poland has cost advantages for e-commerce fulfilment, exceptional land, sea and air connectivity and is an important component of China's Belt and Road Initiative.

"Poland also serves as a bridge for commerce and investments between Europe and Asia. We intend to leverage on Elite Partners' expertise in private and public capital markets to unlock value and opportunities in specialised logistics," said Mr Desmond Wang, Executive Director of JMD Holdings, a co-investor in the Fund and a unitholder of Singapore Exchange (SGX")-listed Elite Commercial REIT.

Incorporated in 2017, Elite Partners has launched four funds to date. It is also the Sponsor of Elite Commercial REIT, the first sterling-denominated Singapore REIT listed on the SGX.

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