Mapletree Industrial forms JV to buy data centers worth S$1 bln

Mapletree Industrial Trust (MIT) on Tuesday formed a joint venture with Mapletree Investments to buy a portfolio of 14 data centres located in the U.S. for US$750 million (about S$1 billion).

Mapletree Industrial Trust
Mapletree Industrial Trust. Company's website.

Mapletree Industrial Trust (MIT) on Tuesday formed a joint venture with Mapletree Investments to buy a portfolio of 14 data centres located in the U.S. for US$750 million (about S$1 billion).

The investment in the data centers provides MIT with a strategic entry into the United States with the North America region being the largest and most established data centre market in the world.

The data centres are located across the United States with a net lettable area of approximately 2.3 million square feet and are primarily leased to tenants on a core-and-shell basis with triple net leases, the company said in a statement.

Cushman & Wakefield Western, who independently valued the target portfolio, said the consideration is at a discount of approximately 3.4 percent to their valuation.

MIT intends to finance its share through a combination of debt funding and a private placement.

Based on the proposed method of financing, the joint venture and proposed acquisition is expected to be distribution per unit and net asset value accretive to unitholders.

Shares in Mapletree Industrial Trust ended up 0.5 percent to S$1.96 on the Singapore Exchange on Tuesday. The stock has risen 19 percent so far this year.

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