Skanska Selling Sweden Properties for $137M

STOCKHOLM-Skanska Project Development Sweden is selling 42,700 m² (460,500 sf) of new lab and office space in Sundbyberg and Gothenburg to locally based AMF Pension for SEK$1 billion ($137 million). Skanska says the buyer will gain access to Sundbyberg properties on Oct. 1, 2004, and the Gothenburg properties on Jan. 1, 2005, at which times the payments for each property will be made. The properties are fully leased.The Frofjarden 2-4 properties in Sundbyberg comprise the first and second phase of Skanska’s Sundbypark development project, situated along the E18 highway in Sundbyberg. Frofjarden comprises offices and a laboratory with a total floor space of about 30,700 m² (330,500 sf), which were completed in 2003 and the first quarter of 2004. Garda 13:3 in Gothenburg is an office property covering approximately 12,000 m² (130,000 sf). It comprises the second phase of the Ceres block new construction project in Gothenburg. The building, which is leased in its entirety to TeliaSonera, is under construction and is scheduled for completion during the fourth quarter of 2004. Skanska Project Development Sweden focuses on the initiation, development, management and sale of commercial property projects (offices, logistics and volume retail centers). The main emphasis is on Stockholm, Gothenburg and the Oresund region. AMF Pension is owned jointly by the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise and LO (the Swedish Trade Union Confederation) The company has 170 employees, 2.8-million customers and assets under management totaling SEK$197 billion ($26.2 billion), making it the sixth largest owner on the Stockholm stock exchange. About 5.7% of the company’s assets under management are invested in properties.