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• BPT Optima acquires majority stake in historical City-Centre Gdansk Poland

Danish real estate investor acquires majority stake in historical City-Centre Gdansk, Poland

Through its Luxembourg real estate investment fund BPT Optima, Danish real estate investor Baltic Property Trust (BPT) has completed the first step in acquiring the majority interests of companies operating and managing real estate in historical Gdansk, Poland.

The polish companies shall manage close to 27 hectares of land in the heart of Gdansk's Young City. The site neighbours the birthplace of the Solidarity movement and is also recognized as one of the best development sites in Central Europe.

The commercial site is uniquely located on the banks of the Martwa Wisla River, within walking distance from the Gdansk Central Station and the Old Town.

Recently rezoned for mixed-use commercial development by the City Council and administration of Gdansk, the investment is part of a larger waterfront project to develop the area into a new district, dubbed the "Young City", with residential housing, hotel, retail shopping centrs and modern office premises. The vision is to develop the Young City as a natural extension of the existing city centre and the qualities of the Old Town. The plan is to have various local and international developers investing more than EUR 300 million in the area over the next decade. Once completed, it is estimated that the Young City will create 600 - 800 new jobs.

The investment process

The investment is being made in operating companies currently controlled by the US-based Emerging Europe Funds that are sponsored by the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, an agency of the US government. BPT Optima S.A., SICAR will ultimately hold 70% of the shares in a Danish operating company with the US Funds holding the remaining 30%. The parties have agreed not to disclose the actual transaction value.

The investment takes place in two phases. The first step involves the acquisition of 4.4 hectares of property owned by the Polish company Synergia 99, which will be the core part of the new city centre environment. The second step will be the acquisition of independent operating companies that manage and operate 22.3 hectares of mixed use property outside of the port borders. Baltic Property Trust will act primarily as investor and owner of these companies. Development will be outsourced to international and local contractors and developers. All residential and hotel rights will be sold to third parties.

CEO in BPT Lars Ohnemus has the following remarks about the acquisition: "This is a major real estate opportunity, not just for us but for the whole city of Gdansk. On our part we will gain access to a good investment in a prime location, whereas the citizens of Gdansk will gain a whole new city district, restoring life to this critical area. I am happy to say that this is not just our ambition but also very much supports the vision of the Gdansk City Council. Their enthusiasm and support behind this project have been strong and we look forward to our future collaboration".

Preserving history

Recognizing the historical value of the site - not just on a national scale but also in the view of world history - the waterfront project will also include various developments to preserve the historical parts of this landmark. These preservation plans will be made in collaboration with the Polish authorities as well as leading Polish and international architects to ensure a balanced and appropriate architectural development of the area. Specifically, the development will preserve the port nature of the former Gdansk shipyard while supporting the City's objectives to develop the historical area surrounding Solidarity Square, including a European Solidarity Centre, a Walk of Freedom and related infrastructure.

For more information about this press release, please contact:
CEO Lars Ohnemus
Phone +45 33 69 07 33
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