July 16 (SeeNews) - NEPI Rockcastle, a property investment and development group incorporated in the Isle of Man, said on Tuesday it has signed a non-binding letter of intent with Dutch-registered real estate developer AFI Europe for the sale of its Romanian office portfolio.
NEPI Rockcastle has granted AFI Europe exclusivity with regard to conducting a due diligence exercise in respect of four type A office buildings with a book value of 309.2 million euro ($348.7 million) as at end-December 2018, NEPI said in a press release.
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AFI Europe has eight weeks from the date of signature of the letter of intent to conduct the due diligence exercise.
The letter of intent is non-binding in nature and any transaction would be subject to completion of a sale and purchase agreement and the fulfilment of numerous conditions, including receipt of bank financing and regulatory and shareholder approvals to the extent required, it added.
In a separate press release issued on Tuesday, AFI Europe said the buildings spread on a total built area of approximately 170,000 square metres.
"The letter of intent to purchase the NEPI portfolio is part of our strategy of long-term development. Apart from the real estate projects we have developed, we are also an investment company and we are constantly looking for new opportunities on the market," Doron Klein, AFI Europe CEO in Romania and the Czech Republic, said.
Depending on the successful completion of due diligence and the fulfilment of others specific conditions, the two sides will decide on the following stages, AFI Europe also said.
NEPI Rockcastle owns four office buildings in Romania: Floreasca Business Park, The Lakeview, Victoriei Office and The Office Cluj.
AFI Europe, a subsidiary of AFI Properties, is a real estate development, management and investment companies operating in Central and Eastern Europe since 1997. AFI Europe operates in Romania since 2005.
Earlier this month, AFI Europe Romania said it has signed a pre-contract with Plaza Centers to buy a 75% stake in the Casa Radio project in Bucharest for 60 million euro.
NEPI Rockcastle, listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and Euronext Amsterdam, is focused on acquiring, developing and managing retail assets in Central and Eastern Europe. Its property portfolio is focused in Romania, Poland and Slovakia, as the group has strong presence in Croatia, Bulgaria, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Serbia and Lithuania.
($= 0.8865 euro)