23 November 2021

Trustee of Laverton North Property Fund (Fund or Laverton North), KM Property Funds, announced today that the Fund successfully settled on the Laverton North property (Property) sale for $42.795 million.

The Fund acquired the industrial cold storage facility in August 2019 for $21 million in a sale and leaseback transaction with ASX-listed Wingara AG Limited, the owner of the Property’s tenant, Austco Polar Cold Storage. The transaction was negotiated directly with the vendor and released capital to them for re-deployment into its business for future growth and expansion.

Strategically located at 5-17 Leslie Road and 6-10 Pipe Road, Laverton North, the Property comprises a combined site area of 30,313 sq.m, including a net lettable area of 15,139 sq.m. Due to the large land holding and long triple net lease structure, the Property attracted intense interest during the sale campaign. Mapletree Logistics Trust Management Ltd, Singapore (Mapletree) was the successful bidder and has acquired the Property on behalf of its Asia-focussed logistics REIT, Mapletree Logistics Trust.

Chief Investment Officer of KM Property Funds, Mario Papaleo, said: “Industrial property, particularly logistics and cold storage, are highly sought-after investments for global investors. The attraction of this Property to Mapletree was its strategic proximity to key infrastructure, including the Western Ring Road, Westgate Freeway interchange, and the Port of Melbourne, which make it prime land for logistical, export-intensive businesses and the long lease to an established tenant.”

Mr Papaleo also said: “Our market research when buying the property showed that industrial cold storage property had lagged other property sectors. We also determined that the tenant’s business model was essential in food infrastructure. Reliably and securely delivering food to its domestic and international markets was crucial to its success in holding a highly regulated export license, one of only a handful available in Australia.”

Chief Executive Officer, Tom Davis, said: “Since its launch two years ago, the Fund has achieved an outstanding result for investors. We are delighted with this exceptional result because it rewards those investors who were early adopters and loyal supporters of KM Property Funds and who believed in our strategy, investing alongside KordaMentha. The opportunity was highly sought after and oversubscribed in a matter of days.”

“The sale of the Property is significant for KM Property Funds as it encompasses several firsts. For instance, it was the first industrial property we acquired. The Fund is also the first in our portfolio to go through a full life cycle from inception to divestment. And it is the first time since KM Property Funds’ establishment in 2013 that one of our funds is returning capital to investors.” Mr Davis said.

Fund investors will receive a significant distribution soon after settlement with the final distribution mid-2022.