GTC Romania, the developer of the Bucharest-based Europe House office building, will this year complete the America House complex, an office building worth some 50 million euros and will also begin work on another four big projects, with a cumulated value that could exceed 200 million euros.
a??We are being approached very aggressively by buyers, interested in America House,a?? says Shimon Galon, CEO of GTC Romania, a company that has already sold its first building developed on the Romanian market, Europe House that now hosts the Orange headquarters.
GTC is controlled by Israeli group Kardan, which is also behind the Omniasig deal, that saw the insurera??s sale to Austrian group Wiener Staedtische.
Half a year before it can actually be delivered, the companya??s second building - America House has reached a 75% occupancy rate, according to the GTC official.
a??We have tenants such as S&T, Schlumberger, Europolis, Cisco, Mobexpert and BCR, from various fields. I believe that, by the time the project is finalised in November-December, the occupancy rate will reach 100%,a?? Galon added.
With a total area of some 40,000 square metres, America House will involve investments in the vicinity of 45-50 million euros, half of which came from an EBRD (European Bank for Reconstruction and Development) credit. The yeara??s end will also bring new projects for GTC, namely office buildings, but also residential and commercial centers, segments where the developer has a powerful presence on other markets in Central and Eastern Europe.
a??I believe now is the best time to invest in Romania, whether ita??s about developers or portfolio investments,a?? Galon feels.
Two of GTCa??s projects are in the residential field. a??We have two residential projects in Bucharest, with works slated to begin this autumn, one located in the northern area of the Capital City and the other downtown.a?? The prices for the two hundred apartments in the northern area will be in the vicinity of 1,200 euros per square metre (plus VAT), which means they will target high-income clients, whereas the 600 apartments downtown will be aimed at average-income customers, as the price will revolve around 1,000 euros per square metre (plus VAT).
Investments in the two ventures are likely to amount to 20m euros and 60 million euros, respectively.
a??We will not invest all this money at the same time,a?? Galon explains. The first apartments will be delivered one year after the works start. a??I know when we are due to launch the works, but I dona??t know when exactly we are going to finalise these investments. It depends on the reaction of potential customers,a?? The GTC official said.
GTC will not abandon the office segment, either. a??We are preparing a business park project, namely an ensemble comprising several office buildings. At this point, I can only say that we will begin works by the end of the year,a?? Galon said.
However, the biggest project of the developer controlled by Israeli group Kardan will be a large commercial centre. The company bought 12 hectares of land in northern Bucharest, for 15.5 million euros. In the first stage, the project will include a mall, only to be completed by several apartment buildings at a later time, with Kardan expecting to invest some 150 million euros in the project.
ionut.bonoiu@zf.ro
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