Equest's local portfolio put at 150m euros, up 28%

Investment fund Equest Balkan Properties, listed on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange, has invested 116 million euros in ten properties on the local market until the end of last year, which were put at 147.8 million euros, up 27.5% compared with the initial investment, reads a report of the fund. Equest entered the local market at the beginning of 2006, with the main properties in its portfolio being the Vitantis shopping centre in Bucharest, the Moldova Mall in Iasi and the logistic park Equest Logistic Center located near the Bucharest-Pitesti highway. The assessment was made by consulting firm CB Richard Ellis, with the rise of Romanian properties being the highest among the markets where Equest is present. The most recent acquisition of the British company is a 70% stake in a 3.3-hectare plot in Ploiesti, for which it paid 3.9 million euros, with the plot set aside for a commercial development. “2007 marked the end of the stage of acquisitions. The company currently focuses on managing its assets and on construction work in order to meet the deadlines and the earmarked budget,” said Petri Karjalainen, director of Equest Property Management Limited, the fund’s investment manager.