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This quarter, the Knight Frank Data Centre report focuses on the growth markets of Asia Pacific. Market analysis includes Osaka, Melbourne, Jakarta, Manila, Hanoi, Taipei, and Indian cities Hyderabad, New Delhi and Chennai.

The growth trajectory of data centre supply noted in the principal global data centre markets in previous quarters is now being mirrored in secondary cities across the region. Underpinned by strong demand fundamentals and a trend towards greater localisation of data centre facilities, total supply (live, under construction, and committed capacity) in the reported APAC markets has grown from just under 700MW five years ago to over 3,000MW today. For the first three quarters of 2022 alone, around 600MW of new capacity has been added.

Melbourne, Jakarta and Osaka now each have over half a gigawatt of aggregate IT Supply. At 593MW of registered IT supply, Melbourne is seeing renewed interest from local and regional operators such as NextDC, AirTrunk, Vantage and Stack Infrastructure, which will add close to 450MW to existing live supply. Microsoft is also known to be planning a facility here. Jakarta has seen significant announcements and planned capacity, several times the existing supply, from both hyperscale cloud service providers like Amazon and Microsoft, as well as a variety of local and international operators. Osaka continues to develop as an alternative data centre market in Japan complementing the more established Tokyo region.

The major cities of Hyderabad, New Delhi and Chennai are also registering rapid growth, with between 300MW to 400MW of IT capacity each. About two-thirds of this supply was added in the past couple of years, with around 50% of total supply planned or committed capacity. The increased investment in the data centre sector in recent years is party driven by government policy, including easier access to credit and other incentives to boost data centre investment. Active players in the market include local firms such as CtrlS, Sify Technologies, Nxtra by Airtel and Web Werks, joint ventures such as AdaniConnex and BAM Digital Realty, as well as cloud service providers.

In Southeast Asia, Taipei, Manila and Hanoi continue to see growing interest from hyperscale CSPs and data centre investors. AWS announced local zones in both Manila and Hanoi this year and is in the process of rolling them out, while the global firm also launched its local zone in Taipei in October 2022. Current key players in these markets mainly comprise the local telcos, with a handful of regional joint ventures such as STT-Globe in the Philippines and NTT-VNPT in Vietnam.

Overall, the expansion of data centre activity into the growth markets across the APAC region remain on a strong footing, reflecting the continued resilience of demand across each geography.

This report was originally published in https://app.dcbyte.com/knight-frank-data-centres-report/Q3-2022/

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Climate positive activities are aimed at not only achieving but surpassing net zero emission goals through eradicating additional carbon dioxide (CO2) and/or greenhouse gases (GHG) from the atmosphere. In short, it’s about saving more GHG emissions than your actions produce, in order to create an environmental benefit.

When developing a climate positive strategy, the first stage is to apply a carbon accounting framework. For instance, if a building product manufacturer wants to develop a climate neutral or positive product, they must determine the total carbon footprint of that product. The carbon footprint covers everything — from the energy needed to source the original material/s as well as to produce, supply, use and dispose of the product — to the emissions related to product original material/s sourcing as well as product production, usage and disposal.

Once the total carbon footprint is calculated, as well as what needs to be counteracted to become carbon neutral, then an additional measurement number, such as an extra 10% for example, can then be tagged on to estimate what is needed to go climate positive.

How enterprises actually achieve climate positivity can differ. Usually, however, they meet the requirements via a mixture of reducing carbon emissions, shifting to renewable energy, producing locally, investing into offsetting, and purchasing carbon credits.

Transforming Your Real Estate

Buildings can realize climate-positive results in a number of ways, and simply put, the steps to climate positive are the steps to net zero plus that extra mile, whatever takes the building to remove more greenhouse gas (GHG) than it is producing. The building’s strategy should include a mixture of the following steps:

Step 1
CHOOSE: the optimal building location, design, energy modelling, eco-friendly materials, renewable energy and intelligent energy management systems

Step 2
MAXIMISE: the structural efficiency, insulation and greenhouse gas reduction systems

Step 3
MINIMISE: the material and operational wastage and water usage

Step 4
MAINTAIN: the hardware and software

Step 5
RE-USE: upon current-use obsolescence

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In this article, we explore an emerging sub-set of infrastructure which is garnering increasing amounts of interest from global private equity and pension funds – Educational Infrastructure or ‘EduInfra’. EduInfra refers to the infrastructure, building and land used to deliver social services like education.

EduInfra is attractive to international annuity investors looking for stabilized yield plays. The sector has an edge over other similar asset classes due to its non-GDP linked and rather recession proof character with significant potential for capital appreciation. It offers a promising 10 – 11% entry cap rate with rental escalations in the region of 3 – 5%. While the market boasts of significant depth, potential has not been unleashed as operators are only slowly moving towards asset light models.  EduInfra’s classification as infrastructure allows for tax optimal exit through InvITs which can also serve as a growth platform attracting institutional investors.

This was originally published in https://resolutpartners.com/2022/11/15/eduinfra-emergence-of-a-new-asset-class/

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As the voice of sustainable investing in the Asia Pacific, APREA has developed the ESG Guidebook for Real Assets in Asia Pacific to raise awareness about ESG and guide our stakeholders in their journey to sustainability. We believe that capital allocated to real assets can play a meaningful role in the achievement of the sustainable development goals (SDGs), while leveraging growth opportunities in a manner that benefits all stakeholders.

We recognise that the ESG landscape continues to evolve, and this Guidebook lays out the basic foundation to integrate ESG and sustainability factors in how each of us conduct our businesses. Aside from providing a framework that can be used as a basis in establishing a systematic ESG approach, we have included practical ways to build and operationalise an ESG program with effective governance, as well as clear steps to engage and communicate with key stakeholders.

The Guidebook also features case studies among APREA members that illustrate various innovative approaches, that reflect their philosophy and investment styles, and thus, facilitating the exchange of best practices.

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At a time when commercial occupancy rates across the country remain stubbornly low, the report delves into how Australian office worker expectations are changing in a digital-first, hybrid work environment and how this impacts their office attendance.

Next Flex | Technology for the next generation Australian office, which surveyed 1,000 office workers across the country, was launched by essensys, a leading global provider of software and technology for the commercial real estate industry, in partnership with Flexible Workspace Australia.

The report’s critical findings highlight a lack of adequate tech is a key factor in people deciding to work from home or an alternative third space, with more than four in five respondents (86%) reporting a disparity between the existing technology in their office and what they need to enable them to do their jobs efficiently.

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Office: Macroeconomic headwinds and inflationary pressure weighed on office leasing activity in Q3 2022, pulling down net absorption by 11% q-o-q to 10.1 million sq. ft. NFA. Finance remained the main engine of leasing demand, with activity also seen from tech and co-working platforms. Rents increased by 0.4% q-o-q and 1.1% y-t-d.

Retail: Retail sales growth slowed as global recessionary fears continued to cloud consumer confidence. However, vacancy declined across the region along with the further easing of pandemic-related restrictions. Rents fell 1.8% y-o-y but posted a quarterly gain of 0.3% q-o-q.

Logistics: Leasing activity eased across Asia in Q3 2022, with markets including mainland China, Korea and India recording weaker demand. Leasing volume in the Pacific was weak compared with the same period of last year, owing to a further drop in availability. Rents grew by 1.4% in Q3 2022, a slightly slower rate than in the previous two quarters.

Investment: High interest rates continued to impair investment in major Asia Pacific markets, driving down commercial real estate investment volume by 20% y-o-y to US$27.3 billion. Acquisitions were driven by real estate funds, property companies, REITs, and institutional groups. Cross-border investment fell 1.0% y-o-y to US$8.0 billion.

This report was originally published in https://www.cbre.com/insights/figures/asia-pacific-figures-q3-2022

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The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated the urgency for hotels and hospitality companies worldwide to act to protect the well-being of the planet, communities, employees and guests, leading to a sharper focus on environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives.

While still nascent, the Asia Pacific hotel industry’s commitment to ESG and sustainability initiatives is steadily increasing – a welcome development as the region has the highest concentration of hotel carbon emissions. Rising energy costs – which have increased significantly since the onset of the pandemic – as well as other factors such as the shift in guests’ preferences toward more sustainable tourism and green accommodation, and growing demand for disclosure around climate risk, are accelerating the industry’s focus on sustainability.

These developments are feeding into a trend that CBRE is observing in the hotels sector: green travellers want to stay in green hotels. With environmental consciousness coming to the fore, sustainable design will increasingly come into play, enhanced ESG practices will offer travellers places where they feel comfortable spending their time, and new investment opportunities will be created.

This report examines the key ESG trends shaping the Asia Pacific hotels sector, and explores the key actions that hotel companies, developers and investors can take to effectively integrate ESG initiatives into their business, operations and investment strategies.

This report was originally published in https://www.cbre.com/insights/reports/asia-pacific-report-eyes-on-esg-why-the-asia-pacific-hotels-sector-needs-to-pay-attention

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With ESG taking on increased importance globally, the S (social) dimension of ESG has received considerable attention recently. This reflects the need to prioritise the health and well-being of staff and customers, as well as supply chain issues, and equity and diversity issues in the workplace. This article highlights these issues and the major initiatives in the S space now being actively implemented by the real estate industry in Australia and Asia.

Doing ESG Well

Importantly, the real estate industry has clearly recognised the importance of ESG in their activities. This mandate has moved on from “doing ESG” to “doing ESG well”. This sees the ESG agenda actively promoted by the professional organisations in the real estate industry in our area; this includes APREA, ANREV and the Property Council of Australia; check their websites for fuller details.

Specifically concerning the S dimension of ESG, this covers a range of social aspects needed for effective businesses today. This includes staffing aspects, concerning equity, diversity and inclusion issues such as gender equality and cultural diversity to address under-represented groups at all levels in the organisation (ie: staff, senior management, board), as well as staff turnover, retention and pay. Wellness and well-being have also been a focus, around issues such as safe workplaces and staff mental health (particularly during COVID). Many organisations have also developed supply chain codes of conduct, with aspects such as modern slavery issues and fair pay being critically important. This sees many real estate companies giving their historic performance metrics to show they are moving forward in the delivery of these S issues.

All of these S activities are important, as they now play a key role in real estate funds’ decisions on whether to invest in these real estate companies, as well as the real estate companies showing a strong commitment to ESG. This is essential for investors today as ESG takes on increased importance at all levels in our communities. Companies clearly face the risk of being excluded from these investment mandates if they do not actively address these ESG issues.

Examples and Best Practices

There are many examples in the real estate industry in Australia and Asia who are world leaders in ESG, as recognised by all of the ESG benchmarks from the various international ESG rating agencies. These real estate exemplars include Stockland, Dexus, Mirvac, GPT and Lendlease in Australia, and CDL and CapitaLand in Singapore. They produce highly informative annual ESG reports which are available on their websites, which clearly highlight how they deliver the S dimension in ESG, with many exciting examples and delivery metrics. I have only given a few examples here; many others are also actively involved in this area; check their websites for fuller details. All of these examples are relevant to both those well progressed in the ESG process and those only just starting out. They will give you lots of ideas on how you can achieve your ESG “best practice” mandate; particularly concerning the S dimension of ESG.

I recently did a report for Investment Property Forum in the UK regarding ESG benchmarks in real estate investment. Using 60 interviews with global leaders in ESG, it gave a fuller international context to ESG in real estate, as well as identifying the priorities and challenges for delivering ESG. There were some amazing examples globally. We found that generally  Australia and Europe were the leaders, with Asia needing to catch-up in their delivery of ESG. Also read some of the excellent ESG reports produced by the leading real estate advisory groups (eg: CBRE, JLL); many have a strong Asia context and Asia case-studies.                                                                  

As more real estate companies begin or expand their ESG journey, it is important to have benchmarks and “best practice” role models for what is being achieved. There are many examples in the real estate industry in Australia and Asia (indicated above) who are world leaders in the ESG space. I strongly recommend you review their ESG reports on their websites for a fuller understanding of what can be achieved by your company. Enjoy your ESG journey and your increased focus on the S issues in delivering your ESG mandate.

In future articles, I will drill into more specifics about how to effectively deliver your S agenda in ESG.

Professor Graeme Newell

Professor of Property Investment
Western Sydney University ×

Professor Graeme Newell

Professor of Property Investment
Western Sydney University

Professor Graeme Newell is Professor of Property Investment at Western Sydney University. He has over 40 years’ experience in property education and research, having received numerous research grants and his applied research has been published widely. Graeme has strong links to the property industry, both in Australia and internationally. He has been a member of APREA for many years and has done several research reports for APREA concerning Asia REITs, and the significance of real estate in Asian pension funds.

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For REIT markets in the region, July’s rally lasted until the Jackson Hole meeting in August. The Fed reiterated its hawkish stance in its annual symposium, which sparked a selloff in the region’s markets. Geopolitical tensions also cast a pall on the region’s equities. Most central banks in the region continued to raise rates to keep pace with the Fed and rein in inflation; Thailand and Indonesia raised their respective policy rates for the first time in almost four years to join the list of central banks that are unwinding Covid-induced stimulus measures.

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E-commerce has grown rapidly over the past five years, with expansion accelerating since the pandemic. Despite e-commerce penetration moderating from pandemic highs after restrictions were lifted, CBRE expects future growth in Asia Pacific to continue to outpace the rest of the world. Of the six key e-commerce drivers identified by CBRE, Asia Pacific possesses a distinct advantage in three: Urban population growth, adoption of digital wallets and a vibrant e-commerce ecosystem.

As the retail industry continues to evolve toward omnichannel, so too will the role and functions of physical stores. Retailers and landlords need to re-invent themselves to prepare for the evolution of retail and the rise of omnichannel.

The growth of e-commerce is also driving robust industrial & logistics property demand, although the supply pipeline is unlikely to meet future demand. Logistics occupiers are advised to explore build-to-suit developments and invest in the latest warehouse technologies. 

Key highlights from this report include:

  • CBRE forecasts Asia Pacific’s e-commerce penetration rate to grow to 35% by 2026. However, e-commerce penetration will vary across different product categories.
  • Korea, mainland China, Indonesia, Australia and Taiwan are expected to be the five most penetrated e-commerce markets in Asia Pacific by 2026.
  • While physical stores will remain essential, the rise of omnichannel is prompting many traditional brick-and-mortar retailers to consider new formats and locations.
  • Over the next five years, 100 to 130 million sq. m. of additional dedicated
  • e-commerce logistics space will be required to support the growth of online sales in Asia Pacific.

This report was originally published in https://www.cbre.com/insights/reports/Asia-Pacific-Report-Omnichannel-Retail-and-its-Impact-on-Asia-Pacific-Real-Estate-October-2022

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