Europa secures 95% occupancy and sells newly refurbished Brädstapeln 13 offices in Stockholm to KPA Pension
Europa, a pioneer in pan-European real estate investment, in partnership with NCAP, the Nordic asset manager, announces the sale of Brädstapeln 13, a newly refurbished 13,316 sq m, seven storey office building in central Stockholm, Sweden, to KPA Pension, the leading pensions company for local governments in Sweden and part of the Folksam Group.
This follows the signing of the most recent office letting at the building in December 2023 with Ekonomistyrningsverket (ESV), the Swedish National Financial Management Authority, taking the overall occupancy to 95%. ESV will occupy 1,719 sq m of office space from early 2025.
Europa acquired the asset in July 2019, with vacant possession gained in 2020 and Europa’s refurbishment programme completed in the following year. This included the creation of an additional 1,409 sq m of lettable space by installing a new HVAC system which could be relocated to the basement from the seventh floor, freeing up that space for repurposing into lettable offices.
Other initiatives included the addition of a new reception lobby, a change of use to create a restaurant space and other structural enhancements, as well as improving the building’s sustainability performance to BREEAM “Very Good” certification and Fitwel Level 1 accreditation.
These enhancements allowed Europa to successfully implement its business plan by leasing the vacant office and restaurant space to achieve 95% occupancy, generating long-term income streams. Other key occupiers secured include Foodora, the Swedish food delivery and Q-commerce company, and AB Svensk Exportkredit, the state-owned export credit agency.
Located on the island of Kungsholmen in central Stockholm, Brädstapeln 13 benefits from excellent connectivity and is a short walk over the canal from Stockholm City Station.
James Keast, Director, Asset Management at Europa, commented: “Refurbishing Brädstapeln 13, a 1970s office block, into a modern, flexible workspace has attracted a diverse range of high-quality tenants, achieving 95% occupancy and capturing rental growth in the process. Having successfully executed this business plan on behalf of our clients, we’re pleased to announce the sale of Brädstapeln 13 as an institutional quality asset to KPA Pension, a strong domestic buyer which also owns the adjoining building.”
John Routledge, Partner at NCAP, added: “This has been an exciting project with Europa and we are delighted to have so successfully repurposed this 1970s office building to be fit to accommodate the increasing demands of modern occupiers. Our view that this area of Kungsholmen was a natural extension to Stockholm’s CBD has been vindicated by strong occupier interest and the high rental levels we have achieved. We are especially proud to have achieved this against the very challenging backdrop of the Covid period and more recent interest rate rises. This is a testament to the excellent project team we put together alongside Europa – RED Management AB & Studio Stockholm. We remain positive about the long term future of Stockholm City Centre as an attractive business location and look forward to working on new challenging projects.”
Europa was advised by JLL and TM & Partners.
