Allied to Offer Entire UDC Portfolio for Sale
January 16 2023 - 7:25AM
Allied Properties Real Estate Investment Trust ("Allied") (TSX:
"AP.UN") recently completed the initial phase of its exploration of
the sale of its network-dense, carrier-neutral, urban-data-centre
(UDC) portfolio in Downtown Toronto (the “Portfolio”). Scotiabank
acted as Allied’s exclusive financial advisor in this regard.
The Portfolio is comprised of freehold interests
in 151 Front Street West (“151 Front”) and 905 King Street West
(“905 King”) and a leasehold interest in 250 Front Street West
(“250 Front”). Allied has connected the properties through
high-count, diverse fibre, enabling the Portfolio to support more
telecommunication, cloud and content networks than any other
data-centre portfolio in Canada. The Portfolio is unencumbered and
does not include 20 York Street, the site for Union Centre.
Allied has drawn the following conclusions from
the initial phase of its exploration: (i) that selling the
Portfolio in its entirety now is optimal financially and
operationally; and (ii) that the sale of the Portfolio in its
entirety can best be achieved by implementing a comprehensive sale
process through Scotiabank and CBRE Limited as exclusive selling
agents.
“Our principal motivation here is two-fold,”
said Michael Emory, President & CEO. “First, we want to
reaffirm our mission and pursue it over the next few years with
low-cost capital. Second, we want to supercharge our balance sheet
and reduce our dependence on the capital markets going forward.” If
successful in selling the Portfolio, Allied expects to use a
significant portion of the sale proceeds to retire debt and the
balance to fund its current development activity. Allied may elect
to use a portion of the sale proceeds to buy back units under its
NCIB.
Reaffirmation of Mission
Allied is first, foremost and above all an
operator of distinctive urban workspace in Canada’s major cities.
Allied’s mission is to serve knowledge-based organizations ever
more successfully over time. The sale of the Portfolio will enable
Allied to reaffirm its mission and to propel continued growth with
low-cost capital. “Our UDC portfolio was connected to our mission
from the beginning, but it is not core to our mission in the way
urban workspace is,” Mr. Emory added. “As a stabilized asset in a
currently favoured sector, the portfolio represents a promising and
timely monetization opportunity, one that could enable Allied to
grow its business going forward in the most flexible and prudent
manner.”
Allied continues to have deep confidence in, and
commitment to, its strategy of consolidating and intensifying
distinctive urban workspace in Canada’s major cities. Allied firmly
believes that its strategy is underpinned by the most important
secular trends in Canadian and global real estate.
Commitment to the Balance
Sheet
Allied has demonstrated an unwavering commitment
to the balance sheet over its life as a public real estate entity.
Allied utilized its balance-sheet flexibility and leverage capacity
over the past three years to fund upgrade and development activity
and to take advantage of compelling in-fill acquisition
opportunities that would not have arisen in a stable economic
environment, pushing its debt-metrics to the high end of
Management’s target ranges.
If successful in selling the Portfolio, Allied
will bring its debt-metrics squarely within target ranges,
establishing a solid basis for further improvement as development
completions contribute to earnings over the next few years.
Management expects the interest savings to offset fully the decline
in earnings resulting from the sale of the Portfolio.
Cautionary Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking
statements with respect to (i) Allied, (ii) its operations,
strategy, financial performance and condition and (iii) the
expected impact of the transactions contemplated in this press
release. These statements generally can be identified by use of
forward-looking words such as “may”, “will”, “expect”, “estimate”,
“anticipate”, “intends”, “believe” or “continue” or the negative
thereof or similar variations. In particular, this news release
contains forward-looking statements pertaining to a possible
transaction related to the Portfolio.
Such statements are qualified in their entirety
by the inherent risks and uncertainties surrounding future
expectations, including that the transactions contemplated herein
are completed and have the expected impact on funding and earnings.
Important factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from expectations include, among other things, general
economic and market conditions, competition, changes in government
regulations and the factors described under “Risk Factors” in
Allied’s Annual Information Form, which is available at
www.sedar.com. These cautionary statements qualify all
forward-looking statements attributable to Allied and persons
acting on Allied’s behalf. Unless otherwise stated, all
forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press
release and Allied has no obligation to update such statements.
About Allied
Allied is a leading operator of distinctive
urban workspace in Canada’s major cities and network-dense UDC
space in Toronto. Allied’s mission is to provide knowledge-based
organizations with workspace and UDC space that is sustainable and
conducive to human wellness, creativity, connectivity and
diversity. Allied’s vision is to make a continuous contribution to
cities and culture that elevates and inspires the humanity in all
people.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE
CONTACT:
Michael EmoryPresident & Chief Executive Officer(416)
977-0643memory@alliedreit.com
Tom BurnsExecutive Vice President & Chief Operating
Officer(416) 977-9002tburns@alliedreit.com
Cecilia WilliamsExecutive Vice President & Chief Financial
Officer(416) 977-9002cwilliams@alliedreit.com
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