GIE SC Autoroutes signed a nine-year lease for two-and-a-half floors in the 110,828-sf building that will generate an initial annual income of $2.5 million (Euro 2.1 million), according to Hammerson, who was advised in the transaction by Jones Lang LaSalle. The deal includes six months of free rent and an option for the tenant to get out of the lease in the sixth year.

The agency will occupy the ground and second floors of the building and approximately half of the third floor, leaving 16,140 sf available in the building, though Hammerson chief executive John Richards says the company is currently in discussions with other potential occupiers in respect of the remaining space. Other tenants in the building include Microsoft, the Japanese Embassy and LBO France.

One of the top five real estate companies in the United Kingdom, London-based Hammerson acquired the building in December 1999 and commenced redevelopment in January 2001. The total development cost was $122 million (Euro 105 million). Work was completed in November 2002.