MLP Group reports strong performance improvement in the first half of 2021
MLP Group continues growing at a vigorous pace across all its markets. Its strategic goal remains to expand the business in Poland, as well as on the German, Austrian and Romanian markets. MLP Group offers storage space at big box storage and city logistics facilities. The Group’s first city logistics projects are MLP Business Park Berlin and MLP Business Park Poznań.The city logistics concept will also be developed at other locations, including MLP Łódź and MLP Wrocław West.
“The warehouse space market is in full swing and is performing very well under current economic conditions. After a temporary decline during the COVID-19 pandemic, demand has recovered and is very strong now. The surface area of properties under construction on the market is larger than ever. The warehouse space lease market is driven chiefly by the e-commerce, logistics and light industrial production sectors. In addition, demand is also supported by customers transferring production from Asian countries to Europe in order to shorten their supply chains. The first half of the year was a very successful period for us as well. We significantly improved our financial performance at all levels of the income statement. Likewise, investments in the expansion of our logistics parks and the land bank led to a strong increase in the value of our assets. In the coming years, we expect further stable long-term growth of the warehouse market. We are also seeing growing demand for ad hoc storage space. Therefore, apart from investments supported by pre-let agreements, we intend to step up our activity in the area of speculative development,” said Monika Dobosz, CFO at MLP Group S.A.
The Group’s financial position remains very strong. In the first half of 2021, its net asset value (NAV) rose by 24%, to PLN 1.5bn, while the value of its investment property increased by 16%, to PLN 2.7bn. In the six months to June 30th 2021, the Group posted consolidated revenue of PLN 97.6m, an improvement of 16% year on year. The Group earned PLN 205.5m in operating profit and PLN 166.5m in net profit (three months ended June 30th 2020: PLN 194.7m and PLN 121.1m, respectively).
In the first half of 2021, the Group implemented projects with a total area of nearly 200,000 sqm, of which properties with a total area of approximately 50,000 sqm were completed during the period, mainly in the following parks: MLP Pruszków II, MLP Poznań and MLP Business Park Berlin I. Overall, at the end of June 2021 finished leasable area offered by MLP Group totalled 736,300 sqm. At the same time, 142,000 sqm were in the construction and development phases. The target surface area of the Group’s logistics parks is 1.38m sqm. In addition, MLP Group has an extensive land bank, with a total surface area of 109.4 ha across all of the Group’s markets. The Group has also signed a number of reservation agreements to purchase new land for planned logistics parks in Poland, Germany and Austria.
“With our extensive land bank and a number of reservation agreements in place, we are well positioned for stable growth in the coming years across all our markets. Apart from strengthening our position in Poland, we are consistently expanding in Germany and Austria. We have completed the construction of a warehouse park in Berlin. At Unna, we are currently building a new storage facility with an area of 56,000 sqm, which is expected to be completed in the first half of 2022. Projects in Niederrhein and Vienna are also under way. We plan further facilities in Köln, Frankfurt am Main, Leipzig and Gelsenkirchen. All our new projects are being implemented with the use of environmental protection solutions. We also remember about our older facilities and regularly upgrade them to meet the highest standards. We want each of them to be BREEAM certified with a rating of Good or higher,” Monika Dobosz added.
In keeping with its build & hold strategy, MLP Group retains completed logistics parks in its portfolio and manages them. All projects undertaken by MLP Group are distinguished by very attractive locations of the logistics parks, application of built-to-suit solutions, and support given to tenants during the lease term.
