Blackstone Invests $1.1B in China Logistics Park

Image by Elevate via unsplash.com

Blackstone has expanded its logistics presence in China by about one-third of its portfolio size with a majority stake acquisition of a logistics development. The company spent $1.1 billion on a 70 percent interest in R&F Group’s logistics park in Guangzhou, China.

READ ALSO: Blackstone, Prologis Complete $618M UK Logistics Deal

The 1.2 million-square-meter (approximately 13 million-square-foot) logistics park is located 15 kilometers (about 9 miles) away from the Guangzhou International Airport and includes tenants from various sectors like third-party logistics, e-commerce, pharmaceuticals and telecommunications.

Cliff Chen, a Blackstone real estate managing director based in Shanghai, said in prepared remarks that the company has plans to grow the logistics park, including constructing additional cold storage facilities and institutional-quality warehouses to meet growing demand.

Chen added in his prepared statement that China’s Greater Bay Area, which spans 11 cities including Shenzhen, Macau and Hong Kong, is becoming one of China’s biggest logistics markets alongside its growth as a financial, technology and transportation hub.

Blackstone’s global acquisitions

Justin Wai, a real estate managing director for Blackstone based in Hong Kong, said in prepared remarks that the Guangzhou acquisition is part of the company’s strategy to acquire high quality logistics assets in top tier distribution hubs with ongoing tenant demand. Wai also said in his prepared statement that once Blackstone’s majority stake acquisition closes, its Chinese logistics portfolio will grow to 53 million square feet throughout 23 cities.

Beginning in 2010, the company has acquired more than 1 billion square feet of logistics space globally in more than 200 transactions. While Blackstone’s presence in China has been growing, the company has also acquired a 48,000-square-foot warehouse and distribution center in Seattle for $11.4 million in September. More recently, Blackstone acquired a 4.3 million-square-foot logistics portfolio in the U.K. from Prologis for $618 million in October.