Real estate developer Lodha on May 11 announced a partnership with Bain Capital and Ivanhoé Cambridge to set up a next-generation green digital infrastructure platform that will invest $1 billion for developing digital infrastructure that includes logistics and light industrial parks as well as in-city fulfillment centers across the country.
The platform will jointly invest around $1 billion to create around 30 million sq. ft. of operating assets to serve India’s digital economy. Each of the three partners will have around 33% equity interest in the property ownership, whilst Lodha will lead the development, operations, and management of the assets, the company said.
“With the rapid digitization of our economy and the progress of ‘Make in India’ combined with the China + 1 strategy of most global manufacturers, we see that there is a huge demand for Grade-A digital infrastructure in our country. Following the government’s focus on improving logistics efficiency and creating jobs in different parts of the country, the platform will plan the development of industrial and logistics parks as well in-city fulfillment centers across multiple cities in India,” said Abhishek Lodha, MD, and CEO, Lodha.
The first project is an around 110-acre logistics and industrial park development at Palava, an established location for digital infrastructure in Mumbai. Additionally, the platform has already started looking at the pan-India acquisitions of land and developed/ under-development projects in these asset classes.
“This is an exciting partnership that brings together an experienced real estate developer with deep digital infrastructure capabilities with the complementary support of global investors with long track records of success in commercial real estate,” said Ali Haroon, a Managing Director at Bain Capital.
“This partnership opens up new perspectives for expansion of our logistics portfolio in India, a high conviction thesis well supported by strong sector fundamentals as India enters a digital supercycle”, said Chanakya Chakravarti, vice president, and managing director, India, at Ivanhoé Cambridge.
Bain Capital is a leading global investment platform with deep experience supporting the development of logistics, industrial, warehousing, and digital assets.
Ivanhoé Cambridge, a global real estate industry leader and a subsidiary of Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), a global investment group, is involved in developing and investing in high-quality real estate properties.
Lodha is already developing around 300 acres of Industrial and Logistics Park near Navi Mumbai, which is almost completely leased out. The company had recently announced a JV with Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing (MSREI) for developing 72 acres at the park.