Phoenix Mills, CPP Investments form JV for Kolkata mall; invest Rs 800 cr

The Phoenix Mills Limited and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) have announced a joint venture to develop a mall in Alipore, Kolkata.

CPP Investments would invest Rs 560 crore  (C$93 million) in Mindstone Mall Developers (Mindstone) in tranches, for an equity stake of 49 per cent. With the funds invested by CPP Investments and PML, Mindstone will develop a retail centre with a potential leasable area of about 1 million sq. ft. The target completion date is for the second half of 2024, CPP Investments said.

PML and CPP Investments are also extending their commitments to their current joint venture, Island Star Mall Developers  (ISMDPL). Both parties have agreed to invest collectively up to Rs 800 crore (C$133 million) into ISMDPL in tranches as required, in the ratio of their respective shareholdings. The joint venture was formed in 2017 to develop, own and operate retail-led, mixed-use developments across the country. Phoenix Marketcity in Whitefield Bangalore served as the seed asset for the alliance. In addition to owning and operating Phoenix Marketcity, ISMDPL owns – and is currently developing – three retail-led, mixed-use developments at Wakad Pune, Hebbal Bangalore and Indore, CPP said .

Atul Ruia, Chairman at The Phoenix Mills, said: "We are pleased to grow our strategic relationship with CPP Investments to establish our footprint in Eastern India. This investment bears testament to the attractive long-term prospects of our robust business model of creating destination consumption hubs in key cities of India. With this asset, we are well on track to more than double our operational retail portfolio by 2024. We remain focused on expanding our portfolio by investing in attractive markets and ensuring timely execution of the projects.”

Hari Krishna, managing director, real estate – India, CPP Investments, said: "With this investment, CPP Investments’ equity commitment to multiple ventures with The Phoenix Mills amounts to over Rs 2,620 crore. India is one of the most important markets for us in Asia Pacific and a critical part of our long-term strategy. Working alongside reputed development partners such as The Phoenix Mills allows us to expand our portfolio and enhances our ability to deliver solid long-term risk adjusted returns to CPP contributors and beneficiaries.”