NAMA offloads Jewel assets

Joint venture partners Hammerson and Allianz Real Estate have agreed to buy the “Project Jewel” portfolio of loans secured against a series of retail assets in Dublin, including the Dundrum shopping centre which has 120 shops, 38 restaurants and a 12-screen cinema.

NAMA said the portfolio has a “par value” of around €2.6bn, and while the transaction is “commercially sensitive” the figure that was settled upon was €1.849bn.

Part ownership in the Ilac Centre and Swords Pavilions are also included in the deal, as well as a number of strategic development sites and other assets.

It also includes the old Dundrum Village centre that was earmarked for the second phase of development of the Town Centre, and a substantial parcel of land between O’Connell Street and Moore Street in central Dublin that Mr O’Reilly assembled at a cost of €400 million in the years before the property crash in late 2008.

Allianz said in a statement that it had invested €900m.

The sales process was handled for Nama by Eastdil Secured.

Ireland’s state-run “bad bank” completed its biggest sale to date on Tuesday with the disposal of a loan portfolio to a joint venture of Hammerson Plc and Allianz Real Estate Germany GMBH for 1.85 billion euros (1.4 billion pounds).

“The competitive tension throughout the loan sales process is continuing evidence of the strong investor appetite for property-related loans in Ireland”, commented NAMA’s chief executive Brendan McDonagh.

10% of the purchase price has been paid as part of signing the loan agreement and the rest of the payment is expected to go through before the end of October.

Hammerson CEO, David Atkins, said they were “delighted” with the acquisition.

“The transaction provides a unique opportunity to increase our exposure to Europe’s fastest growing economy, creating a platform for significant investment and employment opportunities going forward”, he said.

“In partnership with Allianz, I believe we are well positioned to maximise the future potential of these properties and deliver consistent returns for our shareholders”.