Colliers: Metro line from train station to airport will create a new office hub in Bucharest

The Romanian Government’s recent decision to start the subway line project that will connect Bucharest’s main train station (Gara de Nord) to the Henri Coanda International Airport in Otopeni will most likely lead to the creation of a new office hub in Bucharest. Consultants from Colliers International expect new developments in the Expozitiei and Baneasa areas in northern Bucharest, which will compete with well-known office areas such as Floreasca-Barbu Vacarescu. The Government approved at the beginning of December the technical and economic indicators for Line 6 of the Bucharest subway system. Work on the new line is estimated to start in the second half of 2017, with an execution period of four years. Thus, in theory, the new metro line should be ready in 2021. “The announcement marks an important moment for the office market, whose development in the past five years has been focused in two new areas, namely Floreasca-Barbu Vacarescu and Grozavesti-Politehnica,” reads a statement from Colliers. According to experts from Colliers, the main question among developers and tenants changed from Where will Bucharest’s new office hot spotbe located? into What area will benefit first from the new subway line? Lucian Opris, senior associate in the office department of Colliers Internatioal, believes that the answer to this question is the Romexpo-Expozitiei area, which could be a great alternative for the companies located in the Floreasca-Barbu Vacarescu area. “Historically, the Free Press Square area was attractive for tenants active in finance, if we look at companies such as UniCredit Bank, OTP Bank (formerly Millennium Bank), and RBS (formerly ABN Amro), which have had head offices in this area,” Opris added. Currently, there are several land plots located in both Expozitiei and Baneasa areas that could be used for new office projects, according to Colliers. The total area available in Expozitiei is of 10 and 15 hectares, with prices varying between EUR 400 and EUR 700 per sqm, and of up to 20 hectares in Baneasa, where the prices are between EUR 300 and EUR 500 per sqm. The stock of modern office space in Bucharest is currently estimated at 2.13 million sqm, out of which Presei Square/Expozitiei and Baneasa areas represent only 6-7%. The new subway Line 6 will connect the Gara de Nord train station in Bucharest to the Otopeni Airport. It will have a length of 14.2 km and 12 stations, the total value of the investment amounting to RON 5.9 billion, without VAT (some EUR 1.3 billion). Romania should have had this subway line ready for the Euro 2020 matches to be organized in Bucharest. Transport minister promises 18-min. train trip between Bucharest and Otopeni Airport from 2018