Colonial begins construction of the largest new office building in Barcelona
Colonial’s new property will be located in Barcelona’s 22@ district, at calle Ciutat de Granada 150, and will have 17 open-plan floors of 1,800m2, with a total of 24,500m2. 40% of the building, which will be inaugurated in 2018, is already pre-rented by Schibsted for its new head office in Barcelona, the largest pre-rental agreement made in Barcelona in the last 10 years.
This Project involves an investment of €32 million, out of the €77 million of investments announced by the company. The property, developed by “Batlle i Roig Arquitectura”, will bring together the impressive and iconic aesthetics of its 24,000m2, all the features and elements that position it as an attractive property for the growing demand in quality offices in the city. Additionally, this property will be the first office building to achieve the LEED Platinum sustainability certification thanks to the selection of materials in the construction of the building and the decisions made regarding the consumption of natural and energy resources.
The open-plan layout of the floors and the lack of columns allows for occupancy over the actual built space, which results in impressive savings, almost 30% of the rental cost for the tenants. “It is possible to find buildings in the market whose original features do not offer the possibility of refurbishing the building in order to offer open-plan floors that fit the requirements of the demand” explains Alberto Alcober, Chief Operating Officer of Colonial. “In this building, we are starting from scratch to create a product with authentically prime features and a huge distinction over existing supply, therefore creating real estate value for our shareholders and for the cities in which we operate”, adds Alcober.
The commercialisation of the building is carried out exclusively by Cushman & Wakefield. Javier Bernades, Partner and Head of Business Space of Cushman & Wakefield Spain, states that “in a market with a shortage of offices, the simple injection of square metres does not guarantee that they will be occupied; nor does it guarantee consolidation of demand. The market calls for and demands products with high added value that integrate a high performance in sustainability, location, services and efficient usage of space. Only in this way can a city capture the growing demand for offices and consolidate itself as a destination and head office for large companies in the crowded and competitive European office market”.
Inspired by Barcelona
“The conceptual vision of this new building is inspired by Barcelona and its privileged location in front of a large green area. Elements such as ceramic and plants have been incorporated into the façade, which besides giving it a unique and distinctive personality, provides high-value functionalities that guarantee energy efficiency and reduce consumption”, explains Albert Gil, Partner of Batlle i Roig Arquitectura. “Integration into urban areas is guaranteed by recognition of the extremes of the volume, such as the corners of the “illes de l’Eixample” and by using ceramic, a material of long local tradition, on the façade’s exterior”, adds Gil.
Colonial focuses its activity on the prime segment, office buildings with quality features and services located in the main business areas of the cities in which it operates. The company, which has invested more than €1,500M in acquiring new assets in the last two years, allocates much of its investments in creating real estate value through a Value Added strategy of transformation and construction of new buildings which respond with new services and elements of added value to the demand of prime offices.
