Welspun One's 2nd warehousing-centric fund raises Rs 1,000 cr in 4 months

Welspun One has also announced the opening of its "green shoe" option to raise an additional Rs 1,000 crore

Welspun One Logistics Parks (WOLP), an integrated fund and development management platform focused on investing in Grade-A warehousing and logistics real estate, has successfully raised Rs 1,000 crore within four months of launching its second fund, the company said on Tuesday.

It has also announced the opening of its "green shoe" option to raise an additional Rs 1,000 crore. The potential corpus could reach Rs 2,000 crore upon completion of the green shoe option, which would rank it among the largest in the domestic real estate alternatives space.

With an advanced pipeline of land parcels in key warehousing micro markets such as Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, and Lucknow already in place, fund 2 is expected to add 10-12 million square feet of new projects to its existing portfolio.

 

It could potentially create an aggregate portfolio of 16-18 million square feet over the next 4-5 years across first and last-mile facilities in Tier-1 and -2 cities, the company said.

The plan entails an overall investment outlay of over Rs 8,000 crore, which will propel Welspun One to assets under management of $1 billion.

WOLP was India's first alternate investment fund (AIF) of Rs 500 crore when it launched in 2021.

The company added that in square feet terms, warehousing demand is approximately equal to demand for offices, making it among the largest consumers of commercial real estate alongside offices. It has grown at an annual rate of 24 per cent during FY17-23.

"Warehousing continues to be a high conviction area for us, and we believe the industry will grow multi-fold given the government's sustained policy focus on critical transport infrastructure, manufacturing, and consumption," Balkrishan Goenka, chairman of the Welspun Group, said. "It is heartening to see the domestic alternatives industry growing meaningfully, channelling domestic capital toward productive investments that spur economic growth and nation-building."

Anshul Singhal, managing director of Welspun One Logistics Parks, added, "It's indeed heartening to be part of this dynamic growth story of India's warehousing and logistics sector, and to contribute in our way by ensuring a robust platform for investments and a commitment to deliver excellence."