RealCast: Energy transition, H2 Outlook, data centres growth & Build to rent in the UK and the return of a French treasure

The transformation taking place in the energy sector is creating massive opportunities for investors and has several drivers: not just policy and regulation but also demand and economics, as renewable energy is getting cheaper.

The outlook for real estate in H2 is positive, as the year has started well and even 2020 turned out not to be as bad as feared. Investors are regaining their confidence and there is a lot of capital waiting on the sidelines, although in sectors in demand like logistics and resi prices are high and returns can be elusive.

Data centre provider Global Technical Realty, backed by KKR, is to establish a major data centre campus in Slough following an agreement with Segro in the latest move in a fast-growing sector.

Logistics specialist GLP and partner Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Europe and QuadReal Property Group are doubling the size of the Continental Europe Development Partners I fund to €4 billion AUM in order to target opportunities in the UK and CEE.

Both LandSec and British Land are moving into the Build to rent space in the UK. LandSec is repurposing a shopping centre in Finchley and BL is creating 2-4,000 homes at Canada Water, while Investec Real Estate in a new report predicts a “golden age” for BTR in the UK.

In Paris this week the old La Samaritaine department store will re-open its doors after its owner LVMH invested hundreds of millions of euros to bring what President Emmanuel Macron called “a wonderful French treasure” back to its former glory in a show of confidence in the retail sector.

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