CapitaLand has divested two malls in Greater Tokyo for a total of over JPY42 billion ($520 million). The company also announced plans to invest some JPY7.5 billion ($90.8 million) to acquire a site and develop a logistics facility in Osaka.
The sale of Olinas Mall and Seiyu & Sundrug Higashimatsuyama, CapitaLand’s two remaining retail malls in Japan, is expected to result in a net gain of some JPY9 billion for the company. The malls are being sold to unrelated third parties.
The proposed logistics facility will be CapitaLand’s second logistic development in Japan. The site of the facility was acquired from Mitsui & Co as part of its ongoing collaboration with Mitsui & Co. Real Estate Ltd (Mitsui RE).
The facility is expected to complete in 3Q2023 and will have a gross floor area (GFA) of about 27,000 square metres.
“CapitaLand has successfully exited from retail in Japan, which is non-core to the Group, and will continue our strategic pivot by reinvesting the proceeds from the divestment of our mature malls into new economy assets like logistics that have significant growth opportunities,” says Jason Leow, president, Singapore & international, CapitaLand Group.
“The group’s total logistics assets under management (AUM), including our two logistics assets in Japan, is about $3.9 billion. Japan is a key market for CapitaLand to invest and expand our logistics portfolio to become a significant contributor to the Group’s total logistics AUM,” Leow adds.
CapitaLand made its first foray into Japan’s logistics sector in November 2020 through a joint venture with Mitsui RE to develop and operate a logistics property in Greater Tokyo. The four-storey facility is expected to complete in 4Q2022 and will have a GFA of some 24,000 square metres.
See also: CapitaLand divests partial stakes in six Raffles City developments in China in $9.6 bil deal
With the addition of a second logistics facility and the divestment of the two Tokyo malls, CapitaLand’s AUM in Japan is $3.2 billion. CapitaLand currently has four office assets in Tokyo and Yokohama. Through CapitaLand’s wholly owned lodging business unit, The Ascott Limited (Ascott) and its hospitality trust, ART, the Group also has a portfolio of about 6,000 units across 33 serviced residences, hotels and rental housing properties in nine cities, including Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto.
Shares in CapitaLand closed 3 cents or 0.82% higher at $3.71 on June 30.
Artist’s impression of new logistics asset in Japan: CapitaLand