Mapletree Industrial Trust completes US$753.8m joint acquisition of 14 data centres in US

MAPLETREE Industrial Trust (MIT) has completed its US$753.8 million joint acquisition of 14 data centres in the US, the real estate investment trust (Reit) said on Thursday. The acquisition, with MIT's sponsor - privately held Mapletree Investments, was done through an unlisted single purpose trust, Mapletree Redwood Data Centre Trust.

The total investment comprises of a purchase consideration of US$750 million, as well as estimated stamp duty and other expenses of about US$3.8 million.

In all, MIT's investment in the joint venture (JV) comes up to about US$304.7 million.

This includes MIT's proportionate share of the purchase consideration worth US$300 million; estimated stamp duty and other expenses of about US$1.5 million; acquisition fee payable to Mapletree Industrial Trust Management Limited - manager for the JV, amounting to US$3 million to be paid in cash; and other JV-related expenses of about S$0.2 million.

Separately, the trust manager said that out of the S$155.7 million gross proceeds from its private placement, about S$153.1 million, or 98.3 per cent, has been used to partially fund MIT's net requirement of S$169.6 milion with regard to the joint venture and acquisition.

The remaining S$2.6 million, or 1.7 per cent of proceeds, has been used to pay placement-related expenses. Accordingly, proceeds from the private placement would be fully utilised, the trust manager said.

MIT in October priced an upsized S$155.7 million placement of units at S$1.90 apiece to cover the rich end of price talk.The Reit had planned to issue at least S$125 million of units between S$1.83 and S$1.90 per unit, with an over-allotment option of at least S$25 million.

MIT closed at S$2.04 per unit on Dec 20, unchanged from the previous day close.