The Carlyle Group Acquires Second Development Project in Hamburg; Office and Retail Asset Acquired in City Centre

Hamburg – Global private equity firm The Carlyle Group today announces the acquisition of an office and retail asset in the city centre of Hamburg, Germany for €19 million. Carlyle Europe Real Estate Partners has acquired the property from Südkap Kapitalberatung GmbH, a company owned by the Lingenbrink family.

The property asset is located on Hohe Bleichen 7/Amelungstraße/Axel-Springer-Platz 4 in the centre of Hamburg and on one of the main shopping streets. Carlyle Europe Real Estate Partners plans to develop the site into a very attractive office and retail building and will invest a total of €45 million in the acquisition and development. Carlyle Europe Real Estate Partners will invest in the asset through its second European real estate fund, Carlyle Europe Real Estate Partners II, a €760 million fund.

This is Carlyle Europe Real Estate Partners’ second development project in the centre of Hamburg. In March 2005, Carlyle Europe Real Estate Partners acquired a development project on the centrally located Gänsemarkt 45, where it is currently developing a new retail and office building. The complex will include retail space of nearly 2,000 m2 on two floors, and approximately 8,000m2 of office space.

Additionally, Carlyle Europe Real Estate Partners II invested in a retail portfolio in Germany last autumn. In September 2005, Carlyle Europe Real Estate Partners acquired a seven property portfolio throughout Germany leased to the furniture retailer Roller. The transaction was closed in the record time of seven days following the first contact to the seller. Carlyle Europe Real Estate Partners successfully sold the portfolio to an Australian buyer in December 2005.

Wulf Meinel, Managing Director, The Carlyle Group said, "We are delighted to be involved in a second development in Hamburg, and our fifth real estate investment in Germany. We believe Hamburg is the strongest local real estate market in Germany at the moment, and that this development in such an excellent location will prove popular with both office and retail tenants."

Carlyle Europe Real Estate Partners II closed in September 2005 with €760 million in equity commitments. To date it has made 11 investments across Europe, including the Roller portfolio in Germany, the Venus and Reale Mutua portfolios in Italy, a 34 asset portfolio in France, single asset acquisitions in Spain, France, Belgium and the UK, and development projects in Denmark and the UK.