Business Centre 135 located in Vilnius and owned by Capitalica Asset Manegement, an investment management company of SBA Group, received the Excellence certificate which is one of the highest BREEAM ratings. This was already the second BREEAM In-Use Excellence certificate for the business centre’s manager – in 2020, a similar recognition was given to the Kauno Dokas office building which utilized the water from the Neris river for cooling.
The international sustainability certificate BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) assesses over 50 aspects of sustainability and certifies that a building meets the highest energy efficiency and sustainability standards, ensuring the comfort and well-being of the staff.
“Even though global sustainability standards are no longer a novelty, there are not that many BREEAM-certified buildings in Lithuania. However, this is becoming a new normal both for the tenants who can choose high-quality, sustainable and healthy offices for their staff, as well as for the developers who aim for long-term ROI,” commented Andrius Barštys, CEO of Capitalica Asset Management.
Currently, only 5 business centres in Lithuania holds the BREEAM In-Use Excellence certificate, including the 135 centre in Vilnius and Kauno Dokas in the city of Kaunas.
According to Evaldas Savickis, CEO at the building sustainability certification and consulting company Vesta Consulting, responsible corporate approach to environment and people’s well-being has become the norm in the office market.
“Implementation of sustainability criteria ensures more comfortable conditions within the building for the staff as well as lower consumption of water, electricity and other resources, resulting in higher building value – a win-win both for the office administrator and for the people working there,” said Savickis.
Not every building succeeds in receiving a BREEAM certificate. The newer the building, the easier to meet the requirements.
“It is easier to get the Excellence certificate for more recent buildings because of newer technologies used for their construction and due to stricter construction requirements in terms of energy efficiency and building’s adaptation for the disabled and parents with young children. Sometimes, it can be impossible to receive the certificate due to building’s location alone, also due to technical design solutions that can no longer be replaced or the replacement of which requires an unreasonable investment,” Savickis explained.
The 135 business centre, located on the Žalgirio street, has leased out all of its office space. It is home to such companies as Hertz, Studio Moderna, Ferratum Finance, Squalio Lietuva, Evolvery and others. The building is administrated by EIKA.
SBA Group company Capitalica Asset Management manages commercial real estate in the Baltic States and owns the investment company Capitalica Baltic Real Estate Fund I. It manages the 135 business centre in Vilnius, the Kauno Dokas business centre in Kaunas, the Luizė shopping centre in Klaipėda, as and is currently developing the green office complex Verde in Riga. The company founded the first logistics real-estate investment fund in the Baltic states, Capitalica Green Logistics Fund, which will invest in existing green logistics centres located near major cities and major transport arteries throughout the Baltic region.
The controlling shares (70%) of the company Capitalica Asset Management, established in 2016, belongs to one of the largest Lithuanian capital business groups SBA, another 30% of the shares belong to Mr. Barštys’ company Fox Holdings.
