QuadReal and IGIS form JV to create logistics space in Korea

QuadReal Property Group has formed a joint venture with Korean property asset manager IGIS Asset Management’a fund management arm of to develop logistics assets in Korea.

The partners said they plan to capitalise on the highly favourable structural drivers underpinning demand for logistics space in South Korea, including an acute shortage of Grade-A tenant accommodation. Korea’s e-commerce penetration rate is second only to China and is forecast to accelerate in the coming years.

New properties will be designed and developed to appeal to e-commerce, 3PL, retail and cold storage companies catering to shifting consumer patterns as Korean retail continues to move online, the companies stated.

IGIS Asset Management is Korea’s largest real estate asset manager and IGIS Asia Investment Management its pan-Asia focused fund management arm.

QuadReal will provide most of the capital with the IGIS team responsible for originating, developing and operating the assets.

QuadReal owns and manages more than 11 million sq m of single-and-multi-tenant industrial buildings around the world.

Peter Kim, managing director, Asia, at QuadReal, said: “Global logistics market fundamentals remain compelling, driven by supply chain reconfiguration requirements and the growth of omni-channel retail. In South Korea we continue to witness the interrelation between e-commerce led occupational demand and a shortage of Grade-A space in proximity to dominant urban centres, which is forecast to underpin rental and capital growth.”