ENBD REIT sees robust renewals, leasing across office portfolio
DUBAI, October 8, 2020
ENBD REIT, the shari’a compliant real estate investment trust managed by Emirates NBD Asset Management, has announced important renewals and lease extensions for tenants in its largest real estate assets.
With a combined value of AED865 million ($235 million) as of June 30, Al Thuraya Tower 1, Burj Daman, Dubai Healthcare City 49 and The Edge account for a significant portion of ENBD REIT’s portfolio, with recent leases on five-year terms or more equivalent to 23% of total available office space renewed in these buildings.
New agreements and lease extensions have significantly improved the Weighted Average Unexpired Lease Term (Wault) of the REIT’s portfolio, increasing from 3.2 years to 3.9 years.
Accounting for 469,199 sq ft of Net Leasable Area (NLA), the four assets represent the lion’s share of the office portfolio, said a statement from the company.
Extending and renewing lease agreements with the largest tenants is a key pillar of management’s strategy for building resilience in a challenging environment, while achieving stability to protect rental income, it added.
Anthony Taylor, the head of real estate at Emirates NBD Asset Management, said: "Securing and sustaining longer-term lease agreements is a core component of our strategy. This is particularly important for tackling the challenges created by Covid-19, a weakened oil price environment and a soft real estate market."
"We are delighted that Oracle and other large tenants across our office portfolio continue to place their trust in ENBD REIT as both a fund and a landlord. Our priority now is to maintain momentum while building on our efforts to lease vacant units," stated Taylor.
"For the remainder of 2020 we will focus on asset upgrade programmes across the portfolio, investing in enhancements to bolster value for tenants while making them more attractive to new and existing occupants," he noted.
"Improving Wault in the portfolio directly correlates to the initiatives executed by the asset management team, and we are pleased to be delivering on our promise of tenant satisfaction, having introduced a range of relief measures during the height of the pandemic," he added.
Oracle, ENBD REIT’s largest tenant, has renewed their lease at The Edge building for an additional five years. At present, it occupies 76,422 sq. ft. across five floors in the building, enjoying a prime location in Dubai Internet City.
The Edge is an industry-leading green building that is now in the processes of attaining Leed certification from the US Green Building Council.
The Leed certification is a globally renowned classification programme that recognises best-in-class green building strategies and policies to ensure sustainable construction and investment practices.
The Edge is the second largest asset in the REIT’s portfolio by value, valued at AED257 million as of June 30.-TradeArabia News Service
