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Doughty Hanson & Co Real Estate, one of the largest and most successful European real estate fund managers, has agreed to acquire a logistics site in Avrigny, which is north of Paris, and a light industrial site in Toulouse. The total investment cost to acquire and develop both sites will be €120 million.

Doughty Hanson & Co Real Estate Fund II is investing €17 million of equity to acquire and develop 24.7 hectares of land in Avrigny. The greenfield site will be developed into a logistics park of over 100,000 square metres and is well-located for the main Paris-Lille motorway and rail connections, which form important logistics routes linking Paris to the UK, Northern and Eastern Europe.

Fund II is also investing €17 million to acquire and develop 12 hectares of land on the outskirts of Toulouse. The site is being acquired from Sun Microsystems, as part of Doughty Hanson’s Real Estate Solutions programme. Fund II will redevelop an existing 18,700 square metre light industrial building and develop 25,000 square metres of new office space to create a high-quality business park. The site is located to the west of Toulouse city centre in the Basso Cambo area, close to the ring road and 10 minutes from the airport.

Doughty Hanson’s development partner for both investments is Gicram, a privately-owned logistics, light industrial and regional office development specialist with over 30 years’ experience across France.

Jean Raphael Racine-Grisoli, responsible for the activities of Doughty Hanson & Co Real Estate in France, said: “We are pleased to have agreed Doughty Hanson & Co Real Estate’s first investments in France. Doughty Hanson has a strong track record across Europe of improving real estate assets and creating value. Combined with Gicram’s impressive experience in the French regional market, we are well-positioned to take advantage of these and further opportunities.”

Fund II has now committed to nine investments representing €279.3 million of equity or 47% of the Fund. The seven investments to have reached completion to date are:

* a portfolio of 19 commercial buildings at Kings Hill Business Park, Kent in a joint venture with Liberty Property Trust;
* two residential development joint ventures in Italy - in Rome and in Brescia;
* a portfolio of six office buildings in the Kista sub-market of Stockholm;
* Howick Place, London SW1 in a joint venture with Terrace Hill Group plc;
* Blythe Valley Park, Solihull in a joint venture with Liberty Property Trust; and
* a 50% share in a Spanish residential developer, Aranco Group.

source : Doughty Hanson & Co Real Estate