Hines forays into Mumbai with nearly 1-million-sq-ft office-led mixed-use project

Global real estate investment and development major Hines has entered into the property market of the country’s commercial capital Mumbai to develop a nearly 1 million sq ft office-led mixed-use project spread over an 8.8-acre land parcel in the city.

The company has entered into a development management alliance with a local real estate developer that owns the land parcel. Both the entities will be jointly developing a 30-storey grade A office tower on the plot.

The proposed project is scheduled to break ground in the first quarter of 2023 and will be completed in the fourth quarter of 2025.

“This is an opportune time for Hines to enter the Mumbai office market given the strong growth in global capability centers and financial services companies opening here and the availability of a high-class talent pool…We are marking our entry to the city with a world-class office that’s part of an exciting mixed-use development,” said Amit Diwan, senior managing director and India country head, Hines.

The land parcel is located on and with direct access to the Western Express Highway and adjacent to a metro station. This project highlights Hines’ continued commitment to the India office market following its 2021 entry into Pune last year through a partnership with Goel Ganga Corporation.

“Based on our global experience and local expertise, we are well positioned to bring an office experience that will deliver value to occupiers at every step. This project will deliver on the highest international specifications focusing on sustainability, reduction of operational carbon, enhanced indoor air quality as well as placemaking and identity,” said Monish Krishna, managing director, development, Hines.

Hines forayed into the Indian property market in 2006 and initially developed and leased two office developments including One Horizon Center and Skyview Corporate Park in Gurgaon. In addition to its first office in Gurgaon, the company has also opened new offices in Mumbai and Bangalore, and is now looking to explore more property markets.

Hines is a privately owned global real estate investment firm with a presence in 285 cities in 28 countries. It oversees investment assets under management totalling around $90.3 billion. In addition, Hines provides third-party property-level services to 373 properties totalling 114.2 million sq ft. Historically, Hines has developed, redeveloped or acquired around 1,530 properties, totalling over 511 million sq ft. The firm currently has more than 198 developments underway around the world.

In India, the company has projects spread over 16 million sq ft across Bangalore, the National Capital Region (NCR), and Pune. With the latest alliance for this project, the company is foraying into the country’s commercial capital and active office property market.

Against the backdrop of an ongoing policy overhaul, rising investor confidence, enhanced transparency, and sustained growth in demand for grade A commercial office space, experts believe the investment momentum in the Indian real estate sector will continue to rise.

The appetite for Indian real estate assets among global institutional investors continues to be strong. Major foreign funds like Blackstone Group, Brookfield Asset Management, GIC, Xander, Ascendas, CPPIB, Warburg Pincus and Goldman Sachs are expanding their investments in the sector.