Romania's industrial and logistics market is currently benefitting from its best period in history, both in terms of supply and demand, with development being condensed in a number of large cities with access to at least one highway that facilitates the transport and distribution of goods in a shorter time and with lower costs to a larger number of customers.
According to C&W Echinox’s analysis, the stock of industrial and logistics space in Romania reached 3.42 million square meters at the end of Q3 2018, almost 90% of which is located in Bucharest, Timisoara, Cluj-Napoca, Pitesti, Ploiesti, Sibiu, Arad, cities that have connections to the national highway network.
Other cities where modern logistics parks have been developed, but which do not have direct access to the high-speed road network, are Iasi, Ramnicu Valcea, Braila or Roman, where the projects are mostly built-to-suit, being made at the express request of an occupant.
Bucharest has a stock of more than 1.6 million square meters of storage space, accounting for 48% of the total national stock, the capital city being followed by Timisoara (440.000 sqm), Cluj-Napoca (254.000 sqm), Ploiesti (240.000 sqm) and Pitesti (240,000 sqm).
In the first nine months of the year, new spaces of 380,000 square meters were delivered, with developers being expected to complete another 200,000 square meters, a record level for the Romanian market.
Rodica Tarcavu, Partner, Industrial Agency, Cushman & Wakefield Echinox: "We have noticed a more dynamic market activity over the past three months, with active demands from logistics companies involved in various projects and auctions. The main area of interest is still Bucharest, the city with the largest stock (over 1.6 million square meters) and attractive new deliveries in 2019. Moreover, the big cities (Timisoara, Cluj-Napoca, Sibiu) that have a tradition of industrial development are also on the tenants’ expansion map. We are also observing a growing interest for cities in the Eastern region of Romania, such as Bacau or Iasi. The year 2018 was an excellent one for retailers and distributors who have consolidated or made large-scale moves, and we estimate that we will also witness significant transactions in this segment in 2019."
Given that the occupancy rate is over 95% in most cities, the rental level continued to be stable, class A deposits being traded at between €3.5 and €4.25 per sqm per month, the price is set depending on various criteria such as the occupancy moment, surface area or technical specifications.
Taking into account the development plans announced by the big players in this market, it is expected that the industrial and logistics stock in Romania will exceed the 4 million-sqm threshold by the end of 2019.
