Adams Regulatory News (ADA)

22 Oct 2007 07:00

Dawnay, Day Carpathian PLC22 October 2007 Dawnay, Day Carpathian PLC ("DDC" or the "Company") Announces the Acquisition of multi-purpose development sites in Satu Mare, Romania Dawnay, Day Carpathian PLC, the retail property investment company establishedto invest in Central and Eastern Europe, is pleased to announce that it hasacquired a fourth multi-purpose development site for a value in excess of €9.5million in Satu Mare, Romania (the "Satu Mare Development" or "Satu MareTransaction"). This acquisition is the last of the four pipeline dealsidentified by the Company's property investment manager, Dawnay, Day PanTerraLimited (the "Property Advisor") at the time of the second fund raisingcompleted in May 2007. Further opportunities arising since the pipeline dealsare now also being strongly pursued. Satu Mare Development The City of Satu Mare is located in Satu Mare County in the north-west and isone of the largest cities in Romania. It is significant in the region in termsof commerce, trading, culture and due to its proximity to the Hungarian border.The site is approximately 27,000 sq m and the planned development is estimatedat 31,000 sq m gross lettable area and will comprise a retail and entertainmentcomplex. The acquisition will be funded by DDC out of existing cash resources. The plot is centrally located, just south of the main high street and adjacentto a busy junction. The site benefits from a large catchment area, good accessand transport links from the important areas of the city. The estimated grossdevelopment value is €64 million, to be financed from a combination of equityand debt and the project is expected to be completed within approximately 23months. Based on a capitalisation yield of 7%, this puts the estimated projectvalue upon completion at €84 million. This development is also to be undertaken in conjunction with a local partnerdescribed in the previous announcement dated 28 September 2007. The jointventure has been arranged by the Property Advisor to operate in the local marketas Atrium Developments. It is also intended that the Atrium joint venture willinclude the Cluj-Napoca, Arad and Baia Mare transactions previously announced on15 August 2007, 28 September 2007 and 15 October 2007 respectively. The acquisition is a share purchase transaction from two holding companies inwhich members of the Dawnay, Day Group have a controlling interest andrepresents the Company's fourth investment in Romania and the nineteenthtransaction overall. The leasing of the space, arranged through DTZ Echinox, isprogressing well. Following the acquisition, members of the Dawnay, Day Group have agreed tosubscribe for an estimated €200,000 of new ordinary shares in DDC, representingprofits from the Satu Mare Transaction. Commenting on the acquisition, Rupert Cottrell, Chairman of Dawnay, DayCarpathian PLC said "DDC is confident in the development opportunities in theretail market in Romania and is pleased to announce its fourth such project.This investment will further underline our presence in the market and enable usto benefit from economies of scale with relation to the construction anddevelopment process." Enquiries: Dawnay, Day PanTerra Peter Klimt 020 7834 8060 Paul Rogers Balazs Csepregi Cardew Group Tim Robertson 020 7930 0777 Catherine Maitland Numis Securities Bruce Garrow 020 7260 1000 Anthony Richardson Notes to Editors DDC listed on the AIM market in July 2005 and raised new funds to create ageared €1 billion portfolio of retail properties. To date, the Company haspurchased four shopping centres and 31 retail units located within a residentialdevelopment in Poland, the Antana Warehouse Park in Hungary, the VaryadaShopping Centre in the Czech Republic, the Promenada Shopping and BusinessCentre in Poland, the Plaza Portfolio of four shopping centres in Hungary, MacroMall shopping centre in Brasov, Romania, Babilonas shopping centre in Panevezys,Lithuania, three retail developments at Cluj, Arad and Baia Mare in Romania, andthe Mid portfolio across Hungary and the Czech Republic. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange