Phoenix Mills, Canada Pension Plan Investment to form JV to develop retail centre

NEW DELHI: Retail mall developer Phoenix Mills and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) on Saturday said they have agreed to form a joint venture to develop a regional retail centre in Alipore, Kolkata.

CPP Investments will invest approximately Rs 560 crore in the JV – – Mindstone Mall Developers Pvt Ltd — in tranches for an ultimate equity stake of 49 per cent.

Besides, Phoenix Mills Ltd (PML) and CPP Investments said they have agreed to invest collectively up to Rs 800 crore in their other JV — Island Star Mall Developers Private Ltd (ISMDPL) — in tranches as required.

“With the funds invested by CPP Investments and PML, Mindstone will develop a retail centre with a potential leasable area of approximately 1 million sq ft,” the two companies said in a joint statement.

The target completion date is for the second half of 2024, it added.

Commenting on the development, Phoenix Mills Ltd (PML) Chairman Atul Ruia said the strategic relationship with CPP Investments will help establish the company’s footprint in Eastern India.

“This investment bears testament to the attractive long-term prospects of our robust business model of creating destination consumption hubs in key cities of India. With this asset, we are well on track to more than double our operational retail portfolio by 2024,” he added.

Phoenix Mills remains focused on expanding its portfolio by investing in attractive markets and ensuring timely execution of the projects, Ruia said.

CPP Investments Managing Director, Real Estate – India, Hari Krishna said, “With this investment, CPP Investments’ equity commitment to multiple ventures with The Phoenix Mills amounts to over Rs 26.2 billion. India is one of the most important markets for us in the Asia Pacific and a critical part of our long-term strategy”.

Alipore in Kolkata is a premium neighbourhood and the site is strategically located, surrounded by a dense catchment of residential and office space, Phoenix Mills Managing Director Shishir Shrivastava said.

“We believe that the site’s proximity to established and developing micro-markets, through an extensive and well-developed civic infrastructure, provides us with ample opportunity to cater to the region’s significant untapped consumption potential,” he added.

PML and CPP Investments further said they are also extending their commitments to their current joint venture, ISMDPL.

“Both parties have agreed to invest collectively up to Rs 800 crore (133 million Canadian dollar) into ISMDPL in tranches as required, in the ratio of their respective shareholding,” the statement said.

The joint venture was formed in 2017 to develop, own and operate retail-led, mixed-use developments across India, it added.