A rendering of the project in Summerville, South Carolina (Image: Portman Industrial)

CapitaLand Ascendas REIT on Friday announced its acquisition of a US logistics project at a total investment cost of S$94.8 million ($70.5 million).

CLAR purchased a land parcel in Summerville, South Carolina, near the southern state’s largest city of Charleston, for the development of two single-storey buildings with a total lettable area of 50,991 square metres (548,863 square feet), the SGX-listed trust’s manager said in a release.

The seller is warehouse builder Portman Industrial, which will retain a 5 percent stake in a joint venture with CLAR during construction of the Summerville Logistics Center, according to the manager. The project is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2025, and the REIT plans to acquire Portman’s 5 percent stake once the property is stabilised.

“This development of a prime best-in-class green-certified logistics distribution property aligns with our strategy to expand our logistics portfolio to capture the growth potential in this sector,” said William Tay, CEO and executive director of the manager, which is owned by Temasek-controlled CapitaLand.

Maiden US Development

The Summerville Logistics Center marks CLAR’s first development project in the US and will boost the trust’s logistics assets under management in the country by 27.9 percent to S$434.1 million, the manager said.

William Tay, CEO of CapitaLand Ascendas REIT

Situated along US Highway 78 northwest of Charleston on the US East Coast, the property is less than 50 kilometres (31 miles) from the Port of Charleston and Charleston International Airport. The area hosts manufacturing and logistics giants including Boeing, Volvo, Mercedes-Benz Vans, UPS and FedEx.

The project is targeting a LEED Silver green building certification, which would increase the number of CLAR’s green-certified properties in the US to 10 out of 49 properties, or 26 percent of the gross floor area of the US portfolio.

“We will continue to identify opportunities to scale up in the US, riding on on/reshoring trends, as well as targeting key growth cities and established industrial markets to serve the growing demand for quality logistics assets,” Tay said.

New Assets Boost Growth

CLAR’s net property income rose 3.9 percent year-on-year to S$528.4 million during the first six months of the year, with the manager attributing the growth to contributions from last year’s acquisitions and newly completed properties.

The S$16.8 billion trust’s performance in the period was boosted by last year’s acquisitions of The Shugart business park and R&D facility in Singapore and The Chess Building data centre in northwest London, as well as the completion of the MQX4 suburban office in Sydney and a life sciences property at 6055 Lusk Boulevard in San Diego.

Last month, CLAR agreed to sell a warehouse in western Singapore to data centre operator GDS International for S$112.8 million.