Developer Chancerygate and specialist investor Bridges Fund Management have acquired a 2.1-hectare (five-acre) site on Swords Road in Santry, Dublin, for €4.5m from Careys Building & Civil Engineering.

It represents the first ever joint investment in Ireland for Chancerygate and Bridges, who have been partnering on development projects in the UK for over 10 years.

Subject to planning, the JV partners will speculatively develop 1.06-hectare (114,000 sq ft) of Grade A urban logistics and warehouse space across 14 units ranging from 0.03-hectare (3,500 sq ft) to 0.19 hectare (20,675 sq ft).

All the units will be available leasehold and, once complete, the development will have a gross development value of around €35m.

Careys previously used the site for office accommodation and civil engineering yard space. It is around one kilometre south of Dublin Airport and approximately eight kilometres north of the city centre.

The site benefits from excellent connectivity due to its proximity to the airport, M50, M1, numerous bus routes and the proposed Dardistown Metro stop.

A planning application for the proposed development will be submitted to Fingal County Council within the coming weeks.

Chancerygate is the UK’s largest multi-unit industrial developer and asset manager. The company currently has more than 32.51-hectares (3.5m sq ft) of industrial space under construction or ready for development across 32 sites ranging from Bournemouth to Edinburgh.

Chancerygate managing director, Richard Bains, said: “Acquiring the Swords Road site is a very important milestone for Chancerygate as it marks our first ever investment outside the UK.

“We have a trusted funding partner in Bridges which shares our vision and are excited by the opportunity to offer our high specification, speculatively built product to the Irish market.

“We have a clear strategic growth plan, and expansion into Ireland and further into continental Europe is a central tenet of it. We are actively looking for further opportunities in Ireland and expect to be making further announcements shortly.”

Chancerygate has offices in London, Warrington, Birmingham, Bristol and Milton Keynes. The proposed Swords Road development will be overseen by development director, Mike Walker, who is head of the company’s Warrington office.

Bridges is a specialist impact investor. Its property funds focus on sectors that are well placed to benefit from the transition to a more sustainable and inclusive economy, including healthcare, lower-cost housing and sustainable logistics.

Bridges partner, Guy Bowden, added: “In the last few years, in partnership with specialist developers like Chancerygate, we have shown that there is strong market demand for high-quality sustainable logistics sites near urban centres – and that these developments can play an important role in reducing emissions and supporting local economic growth. We are excited to bring this proven model to Ireland and are confident that this development will bring clear benefits to the Dublin area.”

Bridges and Chancerygate have been working in partnership on projects for more than a decade. Investments include acquisitions sites for industrial development in Leeds and Coventry; the regeneration of Beeston Business Park, Nottingham; and the development of ‘The Curve’, a student housing development in London.

Chancerygate and Bridges were advised on the acquisition by CBRE whilst Lisney acted for Careys. Both CBRE and Lisney will be retained as leasing agents on the proposed development.