Allen & Overy has advised HB Reavis Group, the leading commercial property developer in CEE, on the sale of the Aupark Kosice shopping centre and Aupark Office Tower to New Europe Property Investments Plc. (NEPI) for EUR165 million.

The Aupark Kosice shopping centre is located in Kosice city centre and offers approximately 34,000 square meters of lettable space, which is leased to major retailers such as Mango, H&M, C&A, New Yorker, Datart and Billa. The adjacent Aupark Office Tower comprises 12,700 square meters of lettable space and is leased to tenants such as such as IBM, PWC, Holcim, and Eset.

The transaction also includes the sale of a development project on the site of the former Malinovsky barracks, located in the wider Kosice city center. It is subject to approval from the Slovak Antimonopoly Office.

This is the second transaction between HB Reavis and NEPI, a commercial property company listed on the Main Board of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, the regulated market of the Bucharest Stock Exchange and the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange. In 2013, NEPI acquired the Aupark Zilina shopping centre from HB Reavis. It is also the second largest real estate transaction in Slovakia in 2014.

Commenting on the transaction, partner Martin Magál said: “We are pleased to have worked again with HB Reavis on another interesting transaction. The fact that we continue to advise on such high-profile deals confirms the top tier ranking of our real estate practice.”

The A&O team comprised partner Martin Magal and senior associates Vojtech Palinkas and Juraj Gyarfas.