The Ardent Companies UK, the subsidiary of US-based real estate investment and asset management firm The Ardent Companies, has secured £100 million in acquisition and accordion financing for its UK Industrial and Logistics fund from AgFe.

The financing included an acquisition facility for a portfolio of four core industrial assets with an in-place occupancy of 99%, a weighted average unexpired lease term to break of 7.1 years, and a WAULT to expiry of 8.3 years. The financing also includes an accordion facility, which will enable Ardent UK to acquire more assets under the same strategy.

The senior loan was provided by AgFe on behalf of one of its European insurance account mandates. The loan represents 65% loan-to-value and has been provided for a three-year term.

The four assets, acquired between December 2021 and February 2022, are: a 234,685- square-foot unit in Pickering, North Yorkshire; a 50,124-square-foot unit in Peterlee, County Durham; Tokenspire Business Park, a 305,885-square-foot multi-let estate in Beverley, East Riding of Yorkshire; and a 18,841-square-foot unit at 717B North Circular Road in north west London.

Richard Benson, managing director of Ardent UK, said: “This financing is a major step forward in the growth of Ardent UK’s industrial and logistics fund, reflecting the ongoing opportunities presented by the sector and the strength of our acquisition and asset management strategies. It is exciting to establish a new relationship with AgFe and we look forward to deploying this facility with further acquisitions of strategically-located assets with strong leasing fundamentals.”

James Wright, head of real estate at AgFe, added: “AgFe is very pleased to be working with JLL and Ardent UK, and supporting the growth of their UK industrials portfolio over the next few years. The fundamentals of this sector continue to be very attractive – the granular, diversified exposure coupled with significant asset management potential offered by this portfolio make this a very compelling lending opportunity, and we look forward to helping Ardent UK grow with additional acquisitions.”

JLL Debt Advisory advised Ardent.

By Sharon Smyth CoStar News