BGFP Sources $72M Loan for Cold Storage Development
Completion of the Jacksonville, Fla., project is scheduled for November.
BGFP International has obtained $72 million from Valley National Bank, the Israel Discount Bank of New York, and Nuveen Green Capital to develop a 275,000-square-foot cold storage facility in Jacksonville, Fla. BGFP is a partnership between BG Capital, Saoud Development and FreezPak Logistics, which will occupy the entire property.
The property offers 53,000 pallet positions with 212,000 square feet of freezer space and a 41,000-square-foot cooler dock. The dock will provide users access to a large number of functions, including cross-docking, repacking and USDA inspections, as well as those associated with cold storage, such as blast freezing and overseas container plug-ins.
The 20-acre Jacksonville facility will also include 34 loading docks, 132 trailer parking stalls, 90 container plug-ins and 67-foot clear-height ceilings. The facility is slated for completion in November.
Valley National Bank and IDB are the senior lenders in the deal, with Nuveen Green Capital providing Commercial Property-Assessed Clean Energy financing. Tyler Huffman and Joseph Byrne of BG Capital originated the financing. A mix of traditional and alternative lenders has been a focal point in BGFP’s efforts to put together complex capital stacks in a time of turbulent debt markets, Huffman noted.
READ ALSO: Why Cold Storage Is Getting Hotter
The project represents BGFP’s third built-to-suit location within its national expansion program, which also includes a 172,000-square-foot cold storage facility in Philadelphia and a 543,000-square-foot cold storage facility in Houston. BGFP International says it is committed to upping the availability of cold storage facilities nationwide.
New Jersey-based FreezPak is a cold storage specialist with facilities in its home state, Florida and Illinois, and ones under construction in Virginia and Texas. The company’s robotic division plans on installing 42 robots at the Jacksonville facility.
Cold storage, a hot sector
The U.S. cold storage market was valued at $36.9 billion in 2023 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 13.3 percent from 2023 to 2030, Grand View Research reports, noting that the growth will be support technological advancements in packaging, processing and storage of perishable food products and other temperature-sensitive items.
FreezPak isn’t alone among cold storage operators in maximizing throughput and order accuracy by using robotics applications, high-speed conveyor systems and automated materials handling equipment, according to Grand View.
Also driving demand in the cold storage sector is health consciousness among consumers, and their increasing taste for fresh and perishable commodities, which has in turn spurred demand for higher-quality food packaging and storage. The market has also benefited from the stringent government regulation regarding the supply of temperature-sensitive products, Grand View reports.
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