First Property Group plc

Leasing update on Group property in Poland

First Property Group plc (AIM: FPO), the property fund manager and investor, is pleased to report that it has signed leases covering some 2,691 m², or 20% of the net internal area ("NIA"), of its office building located in Gdynia, Poland. The carried value of this building is €16 million following its write down in March 2021, as a result of it becoming 98% vacant, significantly due to covid related lockdowns.

The rent and service charge payable by tenants now totals approximately €500,000 per annum. This equates to about half the cost of operating the building. When fully let it is anticipated that the building should yield some €2.5 million per annum in rent and service charge.  

The principal tenant, accounting for 15% of NIA and occupying the entire first floor, is the District Court in Gdynia. The Group expects the presence of the court to attract other legal advisers and practitioners to take space in the building.

The building, which spans some 13,400 m² of NIA, is located at 21 ul. Podolska in prime central Gdynia, Poland's second largest seaport after Gdansk. The Port of Gdynia has benefitted from considerable investment in recent years and is currently being enlarged further to enable it to handle Baltimax vessels, with corresponding investment in its road and rail infrastructure.  

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Notes to Investors and Editors:

First Property Group plc is an award-winning property fund manager and investor with operations in the United Kingdom and Central Europe. Its focus is on higher yielding commercial property with sustainable cash flows. The Company is flexible and takes an active approach to asset management. Its earnings are derived from:

·      Fund management - via its FCA regulated and AIFMD approved subsidiary, First Property Asset Management Ltd ("FPAM"), which earns fees from investing for third parties in property. FPAM currently manages thirteen funds which are invested across the United Kingdom, Poland and Romania.

·      Group properties - principal investments by the Group to earn a return on its own capital, usually in partnership with third parties. Investments comprise seven directly held properties in Poland and Romania, and non-controlling interests in ten of the thirteen funds managed by FPAM.

Quoted on AIM, the Company has offices in London, Warsaw and Bucharest. Around one third of the Company's shares are owned by management and their families. Further information about the Company and its properties can be found at: www.fprop.com.