Prologis has started the development of a 21,000 square meter speculative facility at the fully occupied Prologis Park Prague-Uzice in the Czech Republic. The facility will be completed in Q2 2020 and it will offer flexible space solutions for all types of business – logistics/storage or production, with unit sizes starting at 4,500 square meters. It has further development potential for up to another 42,000 square meters.

Two retail parks in the Czech portfolio of the Focus Estate Fund end their year with zero vacancy: Most Retail Park (GLA – 6,471 sqm) in the city of Most and Centro Ostrava Retail Park (GLA – 7,699 sqm) in the city of Ostrava.

Currently, less than two hundred public charging stations for nearly 4,000 registered electric and hybrid vehicles exist in the Czech Republic. Data of energy companies show that the number of public charging stations should increase to 1,300 by the end of 2020. Developers building charging stations within their new office, retail and industrial properties are also preparing for electromobility, according to Arcadis, an international company focused on consultancy in the field of construction, environment and sustainable growth.

Local investor DRFG, through its Czech Real Estate Investment Fund, has acquired the Olomouc CITY shopping centre from Mint Investments. With this acquisition, DRFG manages the first primarily leisure-oriented property in its portfolio.

Trei Real Estate GmbH, a property developer and property asset holder of residential and retail real estate with activities across Europe, develops its sixth retail park of the Vendo Park brand in the Czech Republic. The property is located in the small town of Mnichovo Hradiste, which lies around one hour’s drive north-east of Prague. The total investment costs add up to €2.6 million and the completion is scheduled for Q2 2020. The company plans to keep the asset in its portfolio long-term.

European office take-up is forecast to reach 9.2 million sqm by the end of 2019, down 4% from 2018’s end-year volume. Prague is expected to exceed that decline, with take-up predicted to fall by 22% to 400,000 sqm as demand for office space in the Czech capital continues the downward trend that began in Q2, according to the latest Savills research.

Flow East announced the topping out of its landmark project being constructed on Wenceslas Square (Václavské náměstí) as contractor Metrostav placed the last beam atop the structure.

The Greenline office building, located in the heart of the Prague 4 business district, has been purchased by WOOD & Company from property developer Karimpol International. WOOD & Company’s real estate funds invest in commercial real estate (office buildings and shopping centres), and are among the best-performing funds in the market. With the acquisition of The Greenline, the market value of the fund's assets has exceeded €500 million.

The market value of office buildings in the Czech Republic and in Prague, in particular, has continued growing as a result of steady demand and insufficient supply. Yields from premium office schemes in Prague currently range around 4.3 percent. Aggregate investments in commercial properties in the Czech Republic for the first three quarters of 2019 amounted to €2.5 billion (almost CZK 64 billion), according to Cushman & Wakefield.

VGP NV and Allianz Real Estate, acting on behalf of several Allianz Group companies, announced a successful sixth closing with its 50:50 joint venture, VGP European Logistics. The transaction comprises 13 logistic buildings, including 7 buildings in 3 new VGP parks and another 6 newly completed logistic buildings which were developed in parks previously transferred to the Joint Venture.