TOKYO, March 27, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- The Redwood Group ("Redwood") continued its rapid pace of expansion in the Japanese logistics real estate market with the announcement today of the closing and commencement of two new prime developments in greater Osaka, with a combined estimated completion value of over 120 billion Japanese Yen (over US$ 1 billion).
The two new distribution centers (DC), Redwood Nanko DC and Higashi Osaka DC, are strategically located in the bay area of Nanko Naka and inland at Fujiidera respectively, providing customers with excellent coverage to the greater Osaka market.
Given the scale of the projects, Redwood is proud to partner with financial powerhouses Diamond Realty Management (a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Corporation), Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank and Shinsei Bank as primary lenders.
The planned Redwood Nanko DC, will represent circa 250,000 m2 of Gross Floor Area (GFA) making it one of the largest logistics real estate developments in Japan. Strategically located at the port of Osaka just 15-minutes drive from Osaka CBD and 40-minutes from Kansai International Airport, the two double-ramped distribution centers at Nanko are targeted for delivery in 2016 and 2018. Redwood Higashi Osaka DC is designed as a 5-storey warehouse with a total GFA of over 150,000 m2. Construction is to commence October 2015 and completion by end of 2016. Its location at the confluence of the Meihan, Kinki and Hanshin highways provides excellent access to each of Osaka CBD, neighboring Kyoto, Nara, Wakayama and beyond to Nagoya.
As with all Redwood Japan projects, the construction design of both is set to best international practices, including highly efficient movement of goods with access for vehicles to each floor and a prioritization of safety and sustainability. The developments will feature seismic resistant structures to the newest standards and back-up generators to ensure safety and security while providing business continuity to customers at all times. With the environment as a priority, the facilities are to include water saving devices, energy efficient lighting and the installation of three of the larger rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) plants in Japan yielding a combined generation capacity up to a full 8 megawatts of clean energy for use in the metro area.
The Redwood senior management for over 15 years has been building prime distribution centers in Osaka, second only to Tokyo as the largest logistics market in Japan. With a population of circa 24 million and known as a major global manufacturing center of the electronic, machinery, chemical and pharmaceutical industries, greater Osaka has an estimated annual GDP of US$800 billion in one metropolitan area and has for centuries played a pivotal role both in Japan's import/export and domestic distribution of goods.
Charles de Portes and Stuart Gibson (President and CEO respectively), made this joint comment: "We are thrilled to announce these developments in Kansai of significant scale. Each is carefully located and designed to service with efficiency, safety and environmental sensitivity the logistics needs of our domestic and international clients."
Japan Managing Director, Hideaki Matsunami and Business Development Director, Atsushi Maeda added: "Underlining the strong demand in the region, the vacancy rate for industrial and logistics properties in the Greater Osaka region is at an all-time low of 0.4% compared to Greater Tokyo of 3.8%, making it difficult for firms to find enough quality space to meet their needs. Given the high visibility of both projects coupled with shortage of supply, we are honored that prospective tenants have been proactively contacting us about both locations."
Redwood also commenced construction on its Chibakita DC, strategically located in Chiba Prefecture, one of the most important distribution regions in Greater Tokyo. The area is known for its industrial concentration and offers opportunities to meet rising demand for domestic distribution from both retail and e-commerce customers. The development project will have a gross floor area of 36,944 m2 built on a land site of 18,622 m2. The 4-storey build-to-suit facility for DAIWA Co. Ltd. is scheduled to be completed end March 2016.
About The Redwood Group
The Redwood Group (Redwood), founded in 2006 by Charles de Portes and Stuart Gibson, is operated by senior local professionals in Singapore, Japan and China. Redwood, along with its significant global institutional investor partners, invests in, develops and manages logistics real estate in the largest metropolitan areas of Asia most tied to and growing fastest with global trade.
The senior officers of Redwood, considered pioneers in the development in Asia of international investment quality logistics platforms, have executed more than US$ 5 billion of logistics real estate investments in the region since the late 90s, and several million m2 of developments and acquisitions in the product class while providing high quality distribution space for some of the largest end users and logistics service providers operating both within Asia and around the world. Redwood is a strategic partner of the international investment firm founded and chaired by Sam Zell, Equity International. Additional information about Redwood may be found at: www.redwoodgroup.com and about Equity International on www.equityinternational.com
Contacts
Redwood Osaka Leasing:
Masatora Matsumoto
mmatsumoto@redwoodgroup.com
Taro Inoue
tinoue@redwoodgroup.com
Redwood Investor Relations:
Pierre-Alexandre Humblot
phumblot@redwoodgroup.com
Redwood Corporate Media Relations:
Emma Larsson
elarsson@redwoodgroup.com
+65-6232-2109
Photo - http://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20150327/8521501979
