Online retailers generate 14% of the demand for new, high-tech industrial real estate in Russia, according to participants in the Christmas summit of the Moscow based Guild of Managers and Developers.
Head of land, warehouse and industrial at ООО «Кушман энд Вэйкфилд», Egor Dorofeev, said in his presentation that about 1.3m2 had been sold or rented in Moscow in 2012, and about 1.6m2 across Russia.
However, about half of this amount involves older property: in the Moscow region around 700 000 m2 of warehouse and industrial real estate came on stream.
There is still a shortage of space since the vacancy rate is less than 1% and rents are historically high at $130 per m.
The structure of the demand is relatively traditional: retailers want the most space, followed by production companies and
logistic companies.
Oleg Mamaev, executive director of logistics space developer PNK Group, said:
"The appearance of industrial parks corresponding to international standards in the last few years was the main driver behind the development of the Russian market. Today, from one-third up to half of all deals are relocations from lesser-quality spaces to better ones.
"More companies are investing in the optimisation of their logistics because they understand that professional buildings, effective in exploitation and economical in maintenance, are more profitable than the old ones though these may be cheaper."