Fiera Real Estate UK Limited , the European real estate arm of Fiera Capital Corporation, and private pension scheme company, the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS), have invested in a joint venture (JV) to develop small-to-mid-box industrial properties across the UK.
The investment vehicle will target brownfield and established employment sites to deliver new multi-let urban industrial schemes of up to 250,000ft².
The JV has an initial term of 5 years and is targeting individual acquisitions of up to £50 million.
Reportedly, the JV is already under offer on two prime sites with a gross development value of over £100m in the Southeast.
USS will benefit from Fiera Real Estate’s strong track record in the sector, where it has averaged an internal net rate of return of over 40% on projects sold since 2018.
Through Fiera’s operating partner model, it has developed over 11.8 million ft² of space over the past five years, with a portfolio gross development value of £2.6bn.
The operating partner model refers to Fiera Real Estate’s part-ownership of nine specialist property development companies, which provide its institutional investor base with nationwide coverage at a local level and the ability to transact in and scale portfolios at an accelerated rate through access to off-market opportunities.
Fiera Real Estate head of European real estate, Charlie Allen, said: “The joint venture will leverage our unique operating partner model and our strong track record in the delivery of ground-up development projects to assemble a market-leading logistics portfolio that is exemplary from an ESG perspective, and in terms of what today’s occupier prioritise.
“We are responding to occupier and investor demand for contemporary assets which further sustainability objectives, adding supply chain resilience, enhanced carbon emission profiles and future-proofing benefits to portfolios.
“Supply-demand imbalances, favourable pricing conditions and the digitalisation of the economy are some of the beta tailwinds driving the investment case in UK logistics, and we will be combining these with our proven ability in origination and delivery to create alpha for our investors.”
