Marlet agrees €102m refinancing deal for Dublin docklands office

Developer Pat Crean’s Marlet Property Group has secured a €102 million refinancing facility with Cheyne Capital Real Estate for its Shipping Office scheme on Sir John Rogerson’s Quay in Dublin’s south docklands.

The Shipping Office, developed on the site formerly occupied by the British and Irish Steam Packet Company, comprises 16,923sq m (182,158sq ft) of office accommodation over eight storeys, a 1,185sq m (12,755sq ft) roof garden, five terraces, 27 showers, changing facilities, 16 basement car-parking spaces with two electric-vehicle (EV) charging points and 234 bike spaces.

The scheme has been designed to be one of the most sustainable buildings in Ireland and is on course to achieve LEED Platinum certification and NZEB (nearly zero energy building) status. The property is WiredScore Platinum, holds a Ber rating of A3, and exceeds EU taxonomy (sustainability) regulations. The office-led building features open-floor plates with access to landscaped terraces as well as staff facilities. The property is in a prime location overlooking the river Liffey at the junction of Sir John Rogerson’s Quay and Lime Street in the heart of Dublin’s Silicon Docks area.

Commenting on his company’s deal with Cheyne, Marlet chief executive Pat Crean said: “We are proud to bring this state-of-the-art commercial building to the market. We are particularly pleased with this new refinancing facility, and I want to thank the team at Cheyne Capital for their support, which exhibits strong confidence in Ireland’s commercial office market. This exceptionally located and well-designed, modern office space with best-in-class amenities and ample landscaped area will attract many prospective tenants.”

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Anna Bulach of Cheyne Capital Real Estate said: “We are very impressed with Marlet’s track record of delivering high-quality and environmentally driven development projects in Ireland. We look forward to working with them on this landmark office building, which underlines our interest in best-in-class offices built for the future.”

McCann Fitzgerald advised Marlet on the refinancing transaction, while Conduit Re acted as arranger of the facility. Agent Cushman & Wakefield is managing the letting of the building.

Although the Shipping Office is being formally offered to the lettings market now, it already came close to being leased in its entirety to TikTok prior to its completion. The Chinese-owned social media platform had considered occupying the property on a 12-year lease along with the Tropical Fruit Warehouse, the 80,000sq ft office scheme developed by Iput on the other side of Sir John Rogerson’s Quay. While TikTok proceeded with its plan to occupy the smaller property, it withdrew from negotiations for the Shipping Office. The move was seen at the time as symptomatic of a wider and ongoing trend within the tech sector, in which big businesses such as Meta and LinkedIn had been re-evaluating their real estate requirements. Prior to entering into talks for the two properties in early 2022, TikTok had already signed a long-term lease in December 2021, in which it committed to occupy the Sorting Office, the 18,766sq m (202,000sq ft) office scheme developed by Marlet on nearby Cardiff Lane.

Since acquiring its first site in 2014, Marlet has grown to become one of Ireland’s largest independently owned property companies

The news of the Shipping Office’s refinancing comes just five days after Marlet secured a €25 million loan from Cardinal, Ireland’s largest provider of alternative investment capital, to fund the construction of a purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) scheme on Prussia Street, Dublin 7. The development, just a short walk from Technical University Dublin’s main campus at Grangegorman, will comprise 193-bed spaces along with amenities including a lounge, gym, concierge and social room and is expected to be ready for occupation in the third quarter of 2024.

Since acquiring its first site in 2014, Marlet has grown to become one of Ireland’s largest independently owned property companies. The group now controls and manages property assets valued at more than €2.5 billion for its investors. Its portfolio comprises assets including development sites, completed apartments, office blocks, student accommodation, hotels and retail parks.

Cheyne Capital was established in 2000 and is one of Europe’s leading alternative investment managers. Cheyne, which has its headquarters in London, invests across the capital structure from the senior debt to the equity of corporates and real estate. Real estate investments account for about half the firm’s $11 billion under management and span direct real-estate lending, securitised European real estate debt and selective special situations, including impact real estate investing in affordable and specialist housing.