Aldar Properties also announced the appointment of Jassem Busaibe - the company's chief investment officer - as Aldar Investments new CEO
Abu Dhabi-based Aldar Investments has agreed to acquire three buildings jointly owned by Etihad Airways and Aldar Properties, in a deal worth $327 million (AED.1.2bn).
The deal will see Aldar Investments, which launched in September 2018, acquire full ownership of Etihad Plaza, Etihad Airways Centre and Etihad Airways HQ.
The transaction, expected to be completed in Q2 2019, will see Aldar Investments assume existing debt within the Etihad Plaza and Etihad Airways Centre JVs, which will be kept in line with its established debt policy to hold 35-40% loan to value.
The deal adds 789 residential units, 17,940 sqm net leasable area (NLA) of office space and 11,000 sqm NLA of retail space to Aldar Investments’ portfolio.
New Aldar Investments CEO
Aldar Properties also announced the appointment of Jassem Busaibe – the company’s chief investment officer – as Aldar Investments new CEO.
Busaibe will oversee the implementation of Aldar Investments’ strategy through the active management and growth of its portfolio.
In September last year, Aldar Properties spun-off its property investment arm to create the region’s largest diversified real estate investment company with more than $5.4 billion in assets.
As a result, Aldar Investment Properties LLC took ownership of some of Abu Dhabi’s highest revenue-generating real estate assets, including more than 5,000 residential units and over 500,000 square-metres of prime retail and commercial space, including Yas Mall and the Gate Towers and Arc.
Etihad Airways properties
Busaibe said the acquisition of Etihad Plaza and Etihad Airways Centre allows Aldar Investments “to drive value as we take these assets into our larger real estate platform, enabling greater capital efficiency, grow our net operating income and ultimately, free cash flow that can support future dividend growth”.
He added, “The deal continues Aldar’s remarkable start to 2019 and further demonstrates the strength of Abu Dhabi’s real estate market.”
Etihad Plaza is a mid-rise residential development which houses Etihad employees in apartments ranging from one to four bedrooms and is fully leased to Etihad on a long-term lease expiring 2034.
It also offers a number of retail units comprising offices and medical facilities for Etihad Airways, and retail and food and beverage units which are leased out to third parties.
Located within one of Aldar’s completed developments in Al Raha Beach, Al Muneera, Etihad Airways Centre comprises predominantly office space and a retail offering.
The offices are fully leased to Etihad Airways on a long-term lease expiring 2032. The majority of the ground floor retail units are sublet to retailers such as Carrefour, Jones the Grocer, Style and Smile and Al Wahda Pharmacy, with Etihad Airways occupying the remaining retail space on the ground floor.
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