July 7, 2020: Welspun One Logistics Parks (WOLP) has launched its maiden 110 acre Grade A warehousing park with a leasable area of 3.2 MN SFT and an estimated investment of INR 900 CR (USD 120 MN) in Bhiwandi- a key warehousing market in Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), India’s largest consumption centre.
India wide release: Welspun One’s maiden project is located on a prime, irreplaceable and contiguous land parcel with clear legal title, fully owned by the Welspun Group promoters. The 110 acre project in Bhiwandi entails an estimated investment of INR 900 CR (USD 120 MN) and has a potential leasable area of approximately 3.2 MM SFT. The project is slated to be one of India’s first logistics parks to be developed by a global conglomerate– the Welspun Group; providing customers with the ease of operating, expandability and similar one-stakeholder advantages.
Welspun One has also entered into an MoU with the State Government of Maharashtra under the Magnetic Maharashtra Initiative for this project, which is in advanced stages of receiving necessary approvals under the Integrated Logistics Parks (ILP) policy of the State of Maharashtra; making it one the first of its kind fully compliant projects in Bhiwandi. This development will create an upwards of 2700 multi-level job opportunities.
Designed to global standards and Green Building Certification requirements, the project is positioned to become a key asset in the hub of Mumbai’s warehousing market. By pioneering innovative infrastructure and embracing best-in-class norms, this development is acclaimed to be one of India’s first logistics parks that is equipped for COVID-19 and other such events that could affect park operations. With pre-construction planning and design already in place, the park will be operational by Q4 of 2021.
“We are very excited to announce our marquee project in Bhiwandi, which has an excellent demand-supply dynamics due to robust demand, limited supply and low vacancy. Our 110 acre warehousing development project will be a prime addition to the area. This development has further cemented our focus in the warehousing sector. We are optimistic and view this as one of the only asset classes, especially in the current context, which provides both attractive development returns and stable long-term yields.” mentions Mr. B.K. Goenka, Chairman, Welspun Group.
Echoing the sentiment, Mr. Anshul Singhal, Managing Director, Welspun One says, “We have a customer-first approach in everything we do. Owing to our clear understanding of our customers’ dynamically evolving logistical needs, our park in Bhiwandi is well suited to meet the requirements of a large number of end users including e-commerce, 3PL, FMCG/FMCD, modern retail, pharma and thus far has been very well received by large occupiers. We are also seeing significant interest from international and private equity investors, both at the project and overall platform level; due to the fact that we are launching our first project in a short span of time since inception while parallelly building a robust team that can deliver Grade A projects across India.”
The promoter’s equity obligations towards the project have been met in the form of land, the market value of which is estimated to be INR 350 CR. The project is being developed in phases with the necessary financing already tied-up in principal, alongside a construction loan which will be converted into a “Lease Rental Discounting” (LRD) facility on completion of each phase.
Park features & facilities:
Strategically located in close proximity to the key market of Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR)- India’s economic capital and largest consumption centre which boasts of a population of approx. 26 million. Welspun One’s Bhiwandi project enjoys excellent connectivity to Mumbai-Nashik National Highway (NH3), JNPT (Nhava Sheva) Port, Mumbai’s International and Domestic Airport and is also in close vicinity of other major production hubs such as Thane.
The park lends itself to smaller, independent and exclusive campuses within the larger facility. Each warehouse has been designed to be both, modular and to accommodate varied customer requirements. Designed by global logistics experts, the park’s traffic planning maximizes throughput efficiency. Advanced features like park management and maintenance on a tech-enabled platform, IoT driven traffic management system to minimize travel distance and trucks with RIFD tags to predetermine directions and docking will be integrated.
Additionally, there will be provisions for various utility services like a healthcare centre, 24/7 surveillance, fire prevention and firefighting equipment, resting areas for drivers, LED lighting, low maintenance roof with skylight and ample parking space for heavy as well as personal vehicles.
The park will also be built on key sustainability features such as solar panels for common facilities to provide tenants with an alternative source of power, landscape strategies to minimize water consumption, rainwater harvesting systems, electrically operated doors and a sewage treatment plant of suitable capacity.
Other COVID-19 ready park features include contactless verification for entry/exit of people and vehicles, mandatory health declaration on an app, ultraviolet disinfection, and other automated safety and hygiene checks. The park will rely on software, sensors and digital interfaces to streamline compliances. Welspun One is also building the necessary infrastructure to support a digitized world while embracing a human-centric approach.
