The land cost some €27 million and was purchased from Iasitex, Plaza Centers Romania Country Manager, Luc Ronsmans, told Business Standard. The transaction is one of the most important in Iasi, following last year's sale of Moldova Mall, for some €30 million.
This is Plaza Centers fourth significant acquisition on the Romanian market, following projects in Timisoara, Miercurea Ciuc and Bucharest. The project in Iasi will have shops covering some 54,000 sqm and 15,000 sqm of office space. Construction work will begin next year and is scheduled to end in 2010. Furthermore, the contract stipulates the possibility of developing a 70,000 sqm residential project, to be sold later to another investor, reads a company press release.
The Casa Radio project, an investment estimated to be worth €500 million, is the most important investment of the Israeli group in Romania. The Radio House will cover a total surface of 560,000 sqm, of which 400,000 will be a mix of office and residential space, including a hotel. Plaza Centers owns 75 percent of Dambovita Center, the developer of the Casa Radio project, while the remaining 15 and 10 percent belong to the state-controlled National Company for Investment and the Turkish group Kucuk, respectively.
Iasitex belongs to businessman Stefan Vuza, through A2 Impex, which owns 59.8 of the northern Romanian company, whose second largest shareholder is SIF Moldova, with 31.5 percent. Iasitex is valuated at some €15,16 million.
Yield
The average investment yield, presently 8 percent on the Romanian real estate market, is now moving towards values on the regional market, of some 6 percent.
