Swedish group sails into docklands

THE SWEDISH company which acquired Irish Life International earlier this year is to set up a new Dublin base in the south Dublin docklands. Seb Life is initially to rent two floors of the Bloodstone Building, one of three office blocks at Sir John Rogerson’s Quay which was developed by Sean Dunne’s Mountbrook Group.

Seb Life is likely to be paying in the region of €279 per sq m (€26 per sq ft) for 1,700sq m (18,300sq ft) on the fifth and six floors. Office accommodation of this standard had been renting at over €484 per sq m (€45 per sq ft) around three years ago when the block was completed.

Seb Life paid €26 million for Irish Life International which sells offshore life and investment products to international investors. It has assets of €2 billion under management. The 7,896sq m (85,000sq ft) Bloodstone Building is the responsibility of receivers Grant Thornton following the transfer of the loans to Nama.

There is confidence that the remaining floors will let within a relatively short time now that the building is to be opened daily. An increasing number of office blocks in the docklands are being let on a floor-by-floor basis because of a fall in enquiries from large users. One example is The Observatory – also along the waterfront – which was developed by a company linked to financier Derek Quinlan. Although vacant for several years it is now attracting an increasing number of small firms.

The Bloodstone Building is one of three developed by Dunne at Sir John Rogerson’s Quay, the largest being Riverside IV with 12,355sq m (133,000sq ft), rented by solicitors Matheson Ormsby Prentice. A third block is occupied by AIB Capital Markets. Paul Hipwell of Lisney handled the letting and Michael Healy acted for Seb.