Quintessential has offloaded the high-performing Port Adelaide Distribution Centre to Centuria Capital Group in a deal worth more than $216 million, the biggest industrial deal in South Australia’s history.
The real estate funds manager acquired the asset for $80 million six years ago and repositioned the estate, including a $19-million two-warehouse addition.
Quintessential co-founder Shane Quinn said the strategy underpinning their investments focused on driving tenant demand and long-term value creation—and knowing when to buy.
“Quintessential recognised the potential of PADC in 2019 when no one else did,” Quinn said.
“Under our ownership, the asset underwent strategic capital upgrades that drove strong tenant attraction and retention.”
But it’s not just about buying at the right time, it’s also about exiting at the right time, according to Quinn.
“Our ability to read the market and deliver timely liquidity events [gets] our investors the best risk mitigated returns,” Quinn said.
Centuria Capital Group has snapped up the 32ha site with 13 warehouses set across 174,600sq m of gross lettable area.
PADC, at 25-91 Bedford Street at Gillman, is strategically positioned 12km from Adelaide’s CBD and 7km from the Port of Adelaide.
While the deal has netted a big return for Quintessential, the sale price also represents a 70 per cent discount on replacement cost with a 3.4-year weighted average lease expiry.
Centuria chief investment officer Andrew Essey described it as a “trophy Adelaide asset”.
The sale comes at “a time when the local market benefits from cyclical tailwinds credited to low vacancy, strong leasing demand and limited new supply,” Cressey said.
“Adelaide has one of Australia’s strongest leasing markets with materially lower rents in comparison to other capital cities.”
Cressey said 60 per cent of Adelaide’s industrial pipeline was already pre-committed and supply constraints would continue to provide positive rental reversions within the industrial park.
“The acquisition is a strong start to [the 2026 financial year] and we expect significant investor interest due to the decreasing interest rate environment. We anticipate further, attractive investment opportunities for both domestic and international capital over the year,” Cressey said.
“We continue to see improving conditions within the transactional market with falling debt costs, strong international investor interest for well-priced and well-located property, and healthy retail/wholesale investor appetite.”
The Centuria Port Adelaide Industrial Fund is anticipated to open in September of this year for investment from retail, wholesale and institutional investors.
