GIC picks 50% stake in Tishman Speyer’s office park in Hyderabad

Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC has picked a 50 per cent stake in New York-based real estate developer Tishman Speyer’s office park in Hyderabad, WaveRock, according to a press statement. A 50:50 joint venture between GIC and Tishman Speyer will now own WaveRock.

The phase one and two of WaveRock, comprising a total of 1.5 million sq ft, were completed in 2010 and 2014, respectively. These are fully leased to companies such as TCS Accenture, DuPont, Cap Gemini, Birlasoft, among others.

The third phase of the development is under construction and is expected to be completed over the next two years. Located near financial district employment corridor at Gachibowli, the asset is spread across 2.5 million sq ft and will serve more than 20,000 professionals upon completion.

“A rejuvenated interest in the construction and development sector in India, increasing transparency and an impetus to infrastructure are propelling the investment climate for long-term investors across various asset classes seeking income and growth,” said Avnish Singh, managing director and country head – India, Tishman Speyer.

“With a growing professional workforce, corporates are demanding and choosing best-of-class office environments that are institutionally-owned and asset-managed. WaveRock is a demonstration of this and we hope to replicate our success in other key markets around India,” he added.

Loh Wai Keong, managing director and co-head Asia, GIC Real Estate, said, “GIC is confident in Hyderabad's future as one of the fast-growing cities in India and WaveRock will be an accretive income asset in our portfolio. We hope to leverage our mutual strengths to explore more investment opportunities together in India.”

GIC has ramped up its activity in Indian real estate market to tap the long-term growth prospect of the country. It has invested across residential and commercial segments through an array of deal structures. Most recently, it raised its stake in Bangalore-based Prestige Estates Projects with an investment of Rs 160 crore.

Prior to that, it sealed a mega joint venture with DLF to invest Rs 1,990 across two projects of the developer and also picked up majority stake in Mumbai IT Park Nirlon Ltd for Rs 1,278 crore. With back-to-back deals in the last one year, it has climbed up the deal chart to become the king of realty deals in India.

At a public platform recently, Loh Wai Keong said while GIC is now focused on commercial, residential and retail, it is also watching logistics closely.