Frankfurt’s Marieninsel development gets €267m loan

Perella Weinberg has raised finance from two German banks for development of Frankfurt’s Marieninsel office complex.

Pbb Deutsche Pfandbriefbank and Deutsche Hypo will provide €267 million for the development of two buildings totaling 57,000 sq metres in the centre of the city.

The scheme comprises the Marienturm tower which will be 38 storeys, 155 metres high and offer 45,000 sq metres of office space.  The project also includes an adjoining 10-storey, 11,700 sq metre building called Marienforum.

Local company Pecan Development is advising the US investor, Perella Weinberg Real Estate Fund II.

Pbb is lead manager and structurer for the facility and will act as facility agent and security agent. Charles Balch, pbb’s head of real estate finance for international clients, UK & CEE, said the bank had a long-standing relationship with PW Real Assets which advises the Perella Weinberg fund.

“The Marieninsel development is an interesting project, located in Frankfurt’s city centre. It’s a high-quality office premises being built in an absolutely top location,” he said.

The PWREF II fund, which raised €1.3 billion of equity in 2013, acquired the options for the site from Hochtief a year ago and Pecan Development was founded by former Hochtief employees. The project is being built on Taunusanlage and Mainzer Landstrasse, not far from the Deutsche Bank twin towers, in the banking district.

Some 10,000 sq metres of housing to replace residential space has been developed and a further 5,000 sq metres of subsidised housing is being built.

Marienforum is scheduled to complete in early 2018, and the tower the year after.

Pbb Deutsche Pfandbriefbank has also just closed another loan in Frankfurt city centre. The bank has provided €67.5 million to two international investors – a company managed by French asset manager Amundi Real Estate together with Finland’s Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance.

The loan will finance their acquisition of THA 50, an office building opposite the city’s Exhibition Centre which is occupied by Commerzbank.