Green REIT in exclusive talks to buy Danske Property assets valued at €140 million

Recently floated real estate investor Green REIT is in pole position to buy a portfolio of commercial properties from Danske Bank after it was confirmed that it had entered exclusive talks with the lender and adviser Grant Thornton.

Danske Bank has had Project Arc, which includes Fitzwilliam Hall, a serviced office overlooking the Grand Canal in Dublin, on the market for some time, and investment trust Green REIT has been regarded as the front-runner to land the portfolio, which is now said to be valued at between €135 million and €140 million.

The trust issued a statement late yesterday noting media speculation about a likely deal, and confirming it was in "exclusive discussions with Danske Bank Ireland and Grant Thornton Ireland in regard to the potential acquisition by the company of a portfolio of commercial real estate assets".

It said there was no certainty that any transaction would occur as a result of the talks, and said it would make further announcements as appropriate.

None of the parties involved would comment beyond the statement yesterday.

The properties include Fitzwilliam Hall, which produces €800,000 a year in rent, the Arena Centre in Tallaght and the Globe Retail Park in Kildare. Green is not seeking to buy all the properties in the portfolio, and is understood to have excluded one in Belfast in which it is not interested.

Green REIT raised €310 million from a flotation in June that it intends investing in commercial property in the capital and possibly other urban centres. Part of its plan is to cash in on revived demand for high quality office space in Dublin.