Verdion to develop €95m urban logistics hub in Cologne

Verdion has acquired a former production site in northern Cologne for €95 mln, where it plans to develop an urban logistics hub for its Verdion European Logistics Fund 2 (VELF 2).

Verdion logistics Cologne

The investor, developer, and asset manager will speculatively transform the vacant 6.2-hectare brownfield site in the Ossendorf area. The project will deliver a total of 37,859 m² of new facilities, meeting EG-40 and DGNB Gold standards, and will be powered entirely by renewable energy.
The development will feature a "LiteHub," an urban business hub offering flexible, smaller units with more office space, catering to diverse occupiers. Up to 13,695 m² will be developed for the LiteHub in Cologne, comprising five units ranging from 2,000 m² to 3,500 m².
Additionally, two sub-dividable standard logistics units, each approximately 10,000 m², are planned. With mezzanines and offices, their combined total floorspace will reach 24,164 m².
The site boasts a strategic location, less than 10 km from Cologne city centre and about 4 km from the A1 motorway, a crucial transport route linking Hamburg and the Rhine-Ruhr region. Over three million people reside within a 30-minute drive.
Following building permits and demolition, construction is scheduled to begin in early 2027, with completion anticipated by the end of the same year.
Moritz Heißenberg, executive director – head of Germany, Verdion, said: “This has been a sought-after opportunity in the market and will now become a flagship development for our VELF 2 fund. Combining LiteHub with classic urban logistics space, our plans have been designed to cater for a wide range of occupational demand in one of Germany’s top markets.”
Simon Walter, executive director – Investment Management, at Verdion commented: “We remain focused on new, value-add opportunities across Germany, Denmark and Sweden, with more acquisitions planned for the current quarter and further additions expected in the months ahead.  By combining in-house commercial and technical expertise with local knowledge, we will continue to deliver new assets that maximise every opportunity to the full.”
BNP advised the seller, while GSK Stockmann and Mull und Partner advised Verdion on the purchase.
Verdion is completing significant logistics projects in Denmark and expanding its presence in Germany. A new distribution facility for the cosmetics brand Sæther, located near Helsingør in northern Denmark, is expected to be finished in the first half of 2026. Additionally, a DGNB Gold-certified distribution centre in Horsens, situated in Denmark's triangle region, has already been completed. In Germany, as part of its ongoing acquisition strategy, Verdion has secured a 32,000 m² brownfield site in Rastatt, located on the German-French border south of Karlsruhe.