Charter Hall has zeroed in on Australia’s life sciences sector with the acquisition of the Geoscience Australia complex in Canberra for $363.5 million.
Charter Hall Long WALE REIT, Charter Hall Social Infrastructure REIT and another Charter Hall managed fund acquired the asset together on a 7.4% initial yield.
The 32,659 sqm complex was spread across three separate buildings including office, specialised laboratory and warehousing on a 160,378 sqm site.
The property was fully leased to a Commonwealth agency, Geoscience Australia, on a 9.6-year WALE, with 3% fixed annual rent increases and a net lease structure where the tenant was responsible for all property outgoings.
It was located in Symonston, approximately 7 kms from the Canberra CBD.
Geoscience Australia serves as the Australian Government’s technical adviser on all aspects of geoscience and custodian of the geographic and geological data of Australia.
Given the scientific nature of the tenant, the property incorporates specialised laboratory facilities including a geochemistry laboratory, geochronology laboratory, mineral separation laboratory, mass spectrometer facilities and the National Earthquake Alerts Seismic Centre.
In addition, the building incorporates leading ESG principles featuring a geothermal heat pump system and has achieved a Climate Active Carbon Neutral certification.
Since construction, significant capital has been invested in ongoing tenancy upgrades, as well as installing critical infrastructure and an onsite childcare centre.
The deal comes after Charter Hall Prime Office Fund bought the freehold interest in the Collins Place precinct in the Melbourne’s CBD in August.
Located at the ‘Paris end’ of the CBD, Collins Place sat on a 13,350 sqm site with about 140,000 sqm of floor space across two towers, including 100,000 sqm of A-grade office space plus the Sofitel Hotel.
