Real Estate & Environment

Ellex Klavins’s expertise in commercial real estate and construction matters derives from advising on the largest and most complex transactional, construction and development projects in Latvia. Our clients benefit from our significant experience in orchestrating complex, long-term projects. The breadth of our client base provides us with knowledge, enhanced by hands-on experience from all perspectives. We have mastered the local intricacies of law related to real estate, but we also know how to combine it with a broader internationally-minded approach. Our environmental law team is the only truly specialized team in the market, enabling us to provide efficient support to our clients.

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Ilga Gudrenika-Krebs

Partner

+371 6781 4848

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Inita Jurka

Partner

+371 6781 4848

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Key projects in the field

We advised Hipo Latvian Real Estate Fund I on the sale of Anninmuizas Shopping Centre in Riga

30.01.2019

Ellex Klavins advised Hipo Latvian Real Estate Fund I on the sale Anninmuizas, a retail shopping centre located in Riga, to Lumi Capital. The transaction consisted of a sale of shares in SIA “Anniņmuižas iela” – the company owning the shopping centre.

Hipo Latvian Real Estate Fund I is a closed-end investment fund of Altum, the Latvian state-owned development finance institution. The sale of the Anninmuizas shopping centre was the last divestment of the Fund, which will now be undergoing liquidation, due to maturity.

We advised ELKO Group on Sale of Office Building Complex to Corum Origin

19.12.2018

In late 2018, the office building complex located at Riga, 4 Toma iela, owned by ELKO Group was acquired by Corum Origin which is controlled by Corum Asset Management.

The total footprint of the ELKO office building complex is 10 271 m², including an expansive warehouse facility. Upon selling the building ELKO concurrently entered into a long-term lease contract for 15 years with the new owner of the building.

ELKO Group is one of the major companies in the Baltics and one of the leading distributors of IT products, household electronics and solutions in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). The consolidated turnover of ELKO Group exceeded EUR 1.4 billion in 2017.

This is the first investment by Corum Asset Management in Latvia, and the second one in the Baltics. Corum Asset Management is a fund manager incorporated in France, which makes investments in real estate in 15 European countries through its funds, and next year it is contemplating investments in Northern Africa as well. The overall volume of assets held by Corum was close to EUR 2 billion at the end of 2018.

Legal representatives of ELKO Group in the sale of the building were Partner Inita Jurka, and Associate Zane Miglāne.

More detailed information is available here.

We advised SG Capital on acquiring the SWH office complex

18.12.2018

Commercial real estate fund SG Capital Partners Fund I KS has acquired SWH Office complex located on Skanstes street in Riga CBD. The office complex consists of 8 buildings that after renovation would have 40,000 m2 of leasable space and 850 parking places located on more than 4ha freehold land plot.

Harijs Švarcs, CEO of SG Capital comments: “The office complex is a good addition to the nearby Duntes Nami office building (7300m2) we acquired in June this year. Altogether it becomes the largest office complex in Riga with excellent CBD location, impressive scale and more than 25,000m2 of further development potential.”

SG Capital Partners Fund I KS is a commercial real estate fund managed by the investment management company SG Capital Partners AIFP (SG Capital). The fund makes investments in cash flow generating retail and office real estate projects in Baltics States.

Ellex Klavins provided full spectre of legal advice to the client, including due diligence, preparation of transaction document, carrying out negotiations, advising on lease and construction contract matters and ensuring the execution of the transaction. The client was advised by partner Inita Jurka, associates Ineta Kanepe and Zane Miglane. All transaction terms, including the price, are confidential.

Ellex Klavins advises Baltic Horizon Fund on the acquisition of the LNK Centre office building

Ellex Klavins advised the public real estate fund Baltic Horizon in order to acquire an A class office building with a net leasable area of 7,455 square metres. The property is located in the new modern business district of Riga - Skanste area. The asset is fully leased to five tenants, of which Exigen Services and LNK Group occupy about 90% of the leasable area.

LNK Group is one of the largest local real estate and infrastructure development and construction companies in Latvia. As part of the transaction LNK Group will extend its lease agreement in the property for 10 years.

The sales purchase agreement with SIA LNK Properties and SIA FIN.LV was signed on the 4^th of July 2018 however closing of the transaction is expected to be finalized within one month. The purchase price is approximately EUR 17 million.

Ellex Klavins team advised on various aspects of the deal. The client was also consulted by Partner Inita Jurka, Associates Zane Miglāne and Ineta Kaņepe.

Baltic Horizon Fund is a regulated closed-end contractual investment fund registered in Estonia and managed by Northern Horizon Capital AS, a subsidiary of Northern Horizon group. Baltic Horizon is the first public real estate fund listed on Nasdaq Tallinn exchange. Baltic Horizon Fund units are also listed on Nasdaq Stockholm.

Ellex Klavins advises SG Capital Partners Fund I on the acquisition of the office building "Duntes nami"

Ellex Klavins represented the commercial real estate fund SG Capital Partners Fund I in the acquisition of the office building “Duntes nami” in Riga (Duntes street 3) from the seller East Capital Baltic Property Fund AB. The total area of the property is more than 12 thousand square meters.

Ellex Klavins began work on the project in April 2018 and the transaction was completed at the end of June 2018. The transaction was carried out as a share purchase and included a complex refinancing of the target’s loan commitment in cooperation with Luminor Bank. The Ellex Klavins team advised on all aspects of the deal, starting with in-depth due diligence of the property and the target company, structuring the transaction, negotiation and execution of the transaction.

The client was advised by Partner Inita Jurka, Associates Anete Dimitrovska and Ineta Kaņepe.

Ellex Klavins advised Eastnine in the acquisition of Alojas Biznesa Centrs

On February 2^nd Eastnine AB announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire Alojas Biznesa Centrs from LNK Group for EUR 24.8m. Alojas Biznesa Centrs is one of the highest quality properties in central Riga. The agreement also includes the acquisition of two adjacent properties for EUR 4.8m. The total purchase price is EUR 29.6m. The transaction is expected to close in Q1 2018 and would add approximately EUR 2.4 million to Eastnine’s annual rental income. It is the first transaction of Eastnine AB in Riga and it will fit well with Eastnine’s strategy to build long-term positions in the A class office markets in the Baltic capitals.

Ellex Klavins advised Eastnine AB on the transaction and provided the client with a full scope of legal services, including due diligence, transaction, corporate structuring and tax advice. The client was advised by partner Inita Jurka, senior associates Henrijs Niedra and Reinis Sokolovs and associate Ineta Kaņepe.

Eastnine AB is a Swedish investment company with a net asset value of EUR 232m. The company is currently transitioning into a focused Baltic real estate company, with an aim to generate predictable cash flows as a long-term owner of attractive commercial properties in prime locations in the Baltic capitals. Eastnine AB s listed on Nasdaq Stockholm, Mid Cap.

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Ellex Klavins advised Orkla Confectionery & Snacks Latvija in a Transaction for Acquisition of Land

Ellex Klavins advised Orkla Confectionery & Snacks Latvija on the acquisition of land in Ādaži Region, for the construction of a new production facility. Orkla is planning to move the current production facilities of Laima out of Riga. The complex transaction was launched in the summer of 2017 and additionally provides for the concurrent development of an industrial park, parcelling of land, installation of infrastructure and delivery of the latter to the local government. Cooperation agreements with the local government of Ādaži were also concluded in relation to the transaction.

Opening of the production facilities is scheduled for late 2019. The seller and the developer of the industrial park is Sabre Group.

Ellex Klavins consulted on all legal aspects of the transaction, including legal and tax structuring of the transaction, drafting of documents, negotiating and execution of the transaction. Ellex Klavins worked in close collaboration with Colliers International, a leading real estate consulting company.

We represented New Hanza Capital in the acquisition of the historic VEF Factory complex

New Hanza Capital, AS has added three office buildings to its currently managed real estate portfolio, which are located in the territory of the former State Electro-technical Factory (VEF). The VEF territory is now being developed as a new quarter for business, culture, entertainment and creative activities. The acquired site has the status of cultural heritage and has a high potential for development.

NHC 2, SIA a subsidiary of New Hanza Capital AS, acquired the office buildings from Salvus 6, SIA, a subsidiary of DNB bank. The total value of the transaction is EUR 8.46 million.

The overall floor area of the acquired office buildings is approximately 25,000 m², and the buildings are located in Riga, at Brīvības gatve 214B, Brīvības gatve 214M, and Bērzaunes ielā 1a. Companies Intrum Justitia Software Development Centre, SIA and Accenture Latvian branch are among the most prominent tenants in the buildings.

New Hanza Capital, AS is a company of the ABLV group and was founded in 2006 with a purpose to invest its own and third party funds, to sustainably raise revenues from lease of premises and to ensure the increase of property value and capital gain in the long term. Its majority shareholder is ABLV Bank, AS, which owns 88% of the company’s shares.

The client – New Hanza Capital – was advised by Partner Inita Jurka.

We successfully advised Pontos in a real estate transaction

Ellex Klavins successfully advised Pontos in the sale of real estate property “Saharova Centrs”, located in Riga.

Ellex Klavins team was led by partner Pēteris Dalderis, and the client was advised by associate Beata Plociņa and junior associate Pauls Ančs.

Pontos is a family-owned Finnish company that selectively invests in different industries in Finland and abroad. Pontos invests in growing industries and real estate and development projects in Finland, the Baltic countries, and Portugal.

Ellex Klavins and Ellex Valiunas Helped UAB Prosperus Strategic RE Fund to Increase Its RE Portfolio

Ellex Klavins and Ellex Valiunas advised the Lithuanian investment company UAB Prosperus Strategic RE Fund, a closed-end fund for informed investors, in the acquisition of a 7,250 sq. m. shopping centre in Riga (with Maxima Latvija as the main tenant), as well as a 1,650 sq. m. IKI store in Vilnius. The lease contracts for both objects are long term contracts, in excess of 10 years.

These transactions helped the investment fund to boost its RE portfolio and rental income by more than 50 percent.

In Latvia the client was advised by partner Inita Jurka, senior associate Inese Freivalde and associate Zane Miglāne. Ellex Valiunas in Lithuania was represented by senior associate Donata Montvydaitė.

We advised Lords LB Special Fund V on the acquisition of “Preses nams”

Ellex Klavins advised Lords LB Special Fund V, managed by ‘’Lords LB Asset Management’’ regarding the acquisition of “Preses nams” from SIA LASCO Investment, a subsidiary of AS “Latvijas kuģniecība”. The building – “Preses nams” – and a 5.8 ha land plot situated in Riga, Balasta dambis, was acquired by the company PN Project, which is managed by the Lithuanian real estate and private equity company “Lords LB Asset Management”. The value of the deal is EUR 16.8 million.

‘’Lords LB Asset Management’’ is an investment management company licenced under an AIFM license by the Bank of Lithuania, which provides services for institutional and private investors since 2008. “Lords LB Asset Management” manages 14 funds, including nine real estate funds, three private equity funds, and two energy and infrastructure funds. The total value of assets managed by the funds was EUR 310 million as of December 2016.

The transaction is of crucial importance for further development of the territory of “Preses nams”, as ‘’Lords LB Asset Management’’ plans on a long-term investment of more than EUR 200 million in this project. It will be the biggest office space development project in the Baltic States, and one of the first steps of the company in expanding its real estate development business in the region.

Ellex advised the shareholders of Baltic Retail Properties in the sale of 70 % shareholding to the fund CPA®:17

Ellex represented the shareholders of Baltic Retail Properties, BRP (the President of Kesko Senukai Artūras Rakauskas, the founder of Senukai network Augustinas Rakauskas and the investment group Žabolis ir partneriai) in the sale of a 70 percent shareholding to the US company W. P. Carey’s managed fund CPA®:17 – Global and a 10 percent shareholding to Kesko. In the Baltic countries, BRP possesses 19 commercial and logistics buildings that are leased to Kesko-Senukai (leading DIY operator in the Baltics).

Following this transaction, BRP shareholders hold 20 percent of BRP shares. This has been the largest real estate portfolio transaction in the Baltic region this year.

Ellex Raidla team involved Senior Associate Alla Kuznetsova and Partner Martin Käerdi, In Latvia the client was advised by Senior Associate Māris Brizgo and in Lithuania - Associate Partner Indrė Jonaitytė-Gricė, Senior Associate Donata Montvydaitė, Partner Tomas Milašauskas, Senior Associate Rūta Besusparytė and Senior Associate Laurynas Narvydas.

Ellex Klavins advises on the opening of an IKEA store in Riga

On January 31, 2017 the IKEA store operator representative Sigurdur Palmason, and Nils Usakovs, the chairman of the Riga City Council concluded an agreement for cooperation in relation to the planned opening of the first IKEA store in Latvia.

The long awaited IKEA store opening in Latvia is planned to take place in 2018 and the store will be located in Stopiņi municipality, near the border of Riga.

Ellex Klavins is consulting the IKEA franchise holder and store operator in the process. Legal support for the client was provided by Ellex Klavins senior associates Māris Brizgo and Inese Freivalde and partner Ilga Gudrenika-Krebs.

Ellex Klavins advises the buyer in the acquisition of shopping centre “Atrium Azur”

Ellex Klavins, together with Ellex Valiunas, represented Lithuaninan company ''UAB KS Holding'' in the purchase of ''SIA MD Galerija Azur'', the operator of shopping centre ''Atrium Azur''. ''UAB KS Holding'' is a member of the Finnish retail group “Kesko Oyj”.

The shopping centre “Atrium Azur” was opened in Latvia in 2006.

The Ellex Klavins transaction team consisted of associates Henrijs Niedra and Inese Freivalde, parnter and head of real estate practice Ilga Gudrenika-Krebs and competition expert Martins Gailis.

To find out more (in Latvian) please click here.

Ellex Klavins advised Blackstone in the largest property deal of the Nordic region since 2008

Blackstone Real Estate Partners Europe IV entered into an agreement with 10 funds managed by Norwegian Obligo Investment Management AS to acquire the portfolios in an all-cash deal. It is the largest property deal of the Nordic region since 2008.

The portfolio of residential and commercial property in Norway, Sweden, Finland, Latvia, Germany and the US includes shopping centers, hotels, and apartments.

Ellex Klavins advised Blackstone with respect to the acquisition of the real estate portfolio in Latvia. Ellex Klavins provided the client with consultations on due diligence, tax and acquisition aspects of the Latvian portfolio. Our team was led by experts Ilga Gudrenika-Krebs and Māris Brizgo.

We provided legal assistance in the sale of the 7,000 square meter shopping centre in downtown Riga

During the sales process of the 7,000 square meter Barona shopping centre in downtown Riga we conducted a comprehensive analysis, participated in the negotiation process, and helped with other transaction-related legal issues.

We advised on the lease agreement of the largest office building in Latvia

We advised and represented our client on all stages of this major real estate project in Latvia. During the process a lease agreement of 30 years was concluded for the new office premises of the State Revenue Service (SRS). This building is the most high-profile real estate construction site in Latvia in recent years.
The lease relations regulate the management of the building, including one of the largest and most advanced data centres in the Baltics as well as special security requirements related to the operations of tax, customs services and the finance police.

We advised BPT during the sale transaction of a prominent shopping centre in Riga

Our team advised and handled all legal aspects of the transaction during which BPT sold 100% shares of Juglas Projects; a prominent shopping centre in Riga. The transaction demanded an innovative and creative approach as the latest court practice required major adjustments to the entire transaction structure.

Our team advised real estate fund Lords LB Baltic Fund III on all aspects of a long-term premises tenancy agreement

We advised Lords LB Baltic Fund III and assisted in concluding the long-term premises tenancy agreement for a shopping centre in Riga. The agreement involved both terms of rent and construction work. We also advised on the shopping centre’s land lease agreement with the municipality.

Our team advised Velvet Mink on the cross-border sale of a company shares

Velvet Mink are the owners and operators of mink farms. We handled the sale of 50% of the shares in Velvet Mink companies in Latvia and 100% shares in their companies in Denmark. We concluded a shareholders’ agreement with the buyer and helped to sell minks and equipment for the production of mink, both in Latvia and Denmark.

The transaction had a complicated structure and raised taxation and shareholder agreement issues as the buyer (PRC/Hong Kong national) required treatment from the legislative perspective of his country.

We assisted Nere E in selling luxury apartments in a prestigious district of Riga

We assisted our client with all legal issues related to the sale of luxury apartments to multiple foreign buyers. The apartments are located at the new upscale building Čiekurkrasti in a prestigious district of Riga. The sale structure was complicated as the foreign buyers also required to obtain residence permits for Latvia within a very limited period of time. Our team drafted all of the real estate purchase agreements, management contracts and other related documents.

We advised on one of the largest real estate investments in the Baltics

Lords LB Baltic Fund III purchased a portfolio of 5 major objects in Latvia and 4 properties in Lithuania through a share deal from SMI Real Estate Group. In Latvia, the acquisition involved 3 shopping centres, a logistics centre and a large depot with related land plots.

We represented Z Towers in litigation matters related to the construction of an outstanding architectural project in Riga

Z Towers is a unique project of two, high-rise, circular, residential buildings developed in the centre of Riga. The Towers are combined of a total of 336 apartments and 10 000 sq. m of class A office space. The South Tower is of 123m height and the North Tower reaches height of 117m.
Our experts represented the client in litigation matters against a counterparty designer and author’s supervisor regarding the planning and supervision of the infrastructure and underground portions for the two towers.

We advised FCC Construccion on issues related to the development of Riga Airport

Our client, a major international construction company, is a part of the consortium which won the tender for the long awaited construction of new infrastructure at Riga International Airport. The other partners of FCC Construccion were a German construction company, Hochtief, and A.C.B. Group from Latvia.
We advised FCC Construccion on; its partnership arrangements with the other consortium members, on the establishment of a legal presence in Latvia, and on real estate and construction aspects related to their work at Riga International Airport.

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Industries covered by this practise

Consumer & Retail Energy & Infrastructure Financials & Investments Real Estate & Construction Transport