CAMBRIDGE, MASS. — Norges Bank Investment Management has signed an agreement to acquire a 45 percent interest in two life sciences properties in Cambridge’s Kendall Square neighborhood, just across the Charles River from Boston. BXP (NYSE: BXP) was the seller.
The transaction includes 290 Binney Street, a 16-story, 570,000-square-foot property currently under construction. It is fully preleased to AstraZeneca, which expects to take occupancy in April 2026. The other property is 300 Binney Street, a six-story facility undergoing redevelopment. The Broad Institute has preleased the 240,000-square-foot building and plans to take occupancy in January 2025.
Norges acquired the interest for an initial payment of $212.9 million and has committed to a total project cost of $746.4 million. Upon completion, the total value of the two buildings is projected to be $1.6 billion. The assets are unencumbered by debt, and no financing was involved in the transaction.
BXP will retain the remaining 55 percent interest in the assets and will manage the properties on behalf of the partnership.
Cambridge is among the largest hub of life sciences properties in the United States. The home of both Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the city hosts a slew of major tech companies including Pfizer, Google, Philips, Merck, Bristol Myers Squibb and Biogen, according to the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce.
Developer, owner and manager BXP is concentrated in six markets — Boston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington, D.C. BXP Life Sciences maintains an existing portfolio of approximately 3.9 million square feet, as well as about 5.8 million square feet of development opportunities. BXP expects to complete roughly 1.6 million square feet of current lab developments and redevelopments in the next three years.
BXP’s stock price opened at $56.89 per share Wednesday, Nov. 15, down from $74.39 per share one year ago.
Norges Bank Investment Management is an investment fund created to manage revenue from Norway’s oil and gas resources. The fund invests in equities, fixed-income investments, real estate and renewable energy infrastructure, and maintains holdings in about 9,000 companies worldwide.
— Kristin Harlow