The construction works on the new business park in Craiova are ongoing and the first 10,000 sqm of industrial space will be delivered by the end of the year, Romanian real estate developer Zacaria announced. Southern Industrial Park will comprise 43,000 sqm of Class A industrial space, fully equipped for activities such as storage, logistics, cross-docking or manufacturing.

CTP will invest €15 million in developing a new logistics park near Cluj-Napoca, Romania. CTPark Cluj II will be located in Floresti, Cluj County and will have a total leasable area of 29,000 sqm.

After completion of the second part of the construction in Panattoni Park Cheb, Tchibo has opened an expanded distribution centre for its e-shop. The rentable space increased from 39,000 sqm to 73,000 sqm. This means that in Cheb has grown the second largest logistics hall in the Czech Republic and Tchibo’s largest distribution centre in Central and Eastern Europe. Operations of the first part of the building were commenced on 2 December last year and the site these days just dispatched its millionth parcel.

CTP has acquired two logistics parks located in Western Romania from Slovak group IPEC for €18 million. The two assets are located in Ineu, Arad County and Salonta, Bihor County and have a total leasable area of 37,000 sqm.

Hungarian developer and investor Wing has purchased the Európa Center Business and Logistic Park, located in the northernmost part of Budapest, next to the M0 ring road. Wing plans to further develop the park which has been renamed Login Business Park.

Gross take-up on the Romanian industrial market grew by 54% in H1 2017, compared with the same period of 2016, to 350,000 sqm. According to JLL Romania, the total demand for industrial space reached 180,000 sqm in the second quarter, a comparable level with the one registered in the first quarter of this year.

Total demand on the Budapest industrial property market amounted to 212,750 sqm in Q2 2017, which is the highest quarterly volume ever on record. The Budapest Research Forum published its quarterly industrial market analysis.

M7 Real Estate has acquired a portfolio of 11 light industrial assets in Hungary and the Czech Republic, on behalf of M7 CEREF I, from a joint venture between Partners Group and Cromwell Property Group. The portfolio comprises 209,832 sqm, with seven of the assets located in Hungary and the remaining four in the Czech Republic.

Prologis announced that its 33,700 sqm build-to-suit facility for Czech sports retailer Sportisimo at Prologis Park Prague-Rudna is the first logistics facility in the Czech Republic and only the second such building in Central and Eastern Europe to receive BREEAM’s highest accreditation rating.

Real estate funds managed by Blackstone have agreed to sell their pan European logistics company, Logicor, to affiliates of China Investment Corporation (CIC) for €12.25 billion.  Logicor owns and operates a portfolio of high-quality logistics assets totalling 147 million square feet, in 17 countries with over 70% concentrated in the UK, Germany, France and Southern Europe.