Why Azuri Tower, 2 others are biggest projects to watch in 2022

Of the large cache of pipeline prime office building projects in the commercial real estate market, three stand out as the biggest completions to watch this new year. They are the Azuri Tower in Eko Atlantic City, Famfa Oil Tower in Ikoyi, and the Trinity Tower in Oniru, Victoria Island Extension.

Other pipeline office building projects in the market are The Phoenix, 27N Glover Road, Meristem Securities Office, First Pension Custodian Head Office, Dangote Industries Head Office, Stanbic IBTC Head Office, 40 Adetokunbo Ademola, and The Crystal.

Of the 324,015 square metres of pipeline office space, Azuri, Famfa Oil and Trinity Towers will account for a combined 55,000 square metres of space. It is expected that the three office towers will be completed by the second quarter of this year.

Experts say they present opportunities never seen in the prime office sub-market in the country by reason of their location, build quality, superior infrastructure and top-notch facilities they parade.

Azuri Towers is the office wing of a large mass development comprising three towers- a commercial tower and two residential towers in the heart of Eko Atlantic City being developed by Eko Development Company Limited.

The office tower, which stands on 27 floors, has 27,000 square metres of office space, comprising a shopping mall in the first two floors that will cater for the immediate needs of the residents of the Azuri residential community.

Olawale Opayinka, Eko Development Company’s MD/CEO, says the building, located in the most dynamic area of the city, the Marina, is like no other and promises the best in class facilities.

The expectation is that, on completion, the tower will create thousands of jobs for all categories of workers. The shopping mall alone is expected to create about 1000 jobs that will impact families and the economy in a significant way, according to Opayinka.

It is also expected that the office tower will create opportunities not only for investors but also for hi-tech companies that will be leveraging the city’s self-sustaining infrastructure for international business.

The Famfa Oil Tower, a 20-storey office building with approximately 15,000 square metres of leasable space, is being developed by Dayspring Property Development Company with Julius Berger as its main contractor. Its location on Alfred Rewane (Kingsway) Road, Ikoyi, gives it away as a destination for high net-worth individuals and institutions.

According to the developers, the tower offers a gymnasium, helipad (with a dedicated waiting lounge), 266 car park spaces and raised access floors. Its façade will also comprise high-performance unitized curtain walling with integrated façade lighting, ballistic performance considerations in select areas, and aluminium cladding.

On its part, Trinity Towers, a huge project being developed and promoted by the City of David Church, a province of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), will on completion, offer much to investors, sundry businesses and even fun-seekers.

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It will deliver 13,320 square metres of contemporary real estate, spanning 12 floors with parking for 670 cars in the multi-storey car park. The high point of this development is the elaborate space it will provide for economic, social and religious activities.

It promises a 5000-seater concert hall, indoor amusement for children, retail therapy for the shopaholic, two cinema halls, a gymnasium, rooftop swimming pool, helipad, medical centre, café and restaurant, multi-purpose halls, banking halls, and ATM Gallery. These features and amenities give the facility away as one to look out for in the new year.

It needs to be pointed out, however, that the commercial office market generally has had its downsides.

Olumide Omidire, founder/CEO, Estate Intel, notes in a recent report that this year, the office sector has a total pipeline that is over 25 percent of the existing stock (324,015sqm).

This, according to him, presents a worrying outlook for vacancies in the years to come as larger leasing activity is still driven by relocations. He added that the sector will continue to witness an over-supply which is reason the outlook for the sector this year is negative.

Nnenna Alintah, head, Property Intel, Nigeria, agrees, noting that occupier requirements remained fairly unchanged. She expects that with the new deliveries, tenants may be requiring more and that will squeeze the landlords further in terms of construction cost and evolving strategies for tenant retention.

“Landlords still view the market as a tenants’ market. Competitive leasing terms are still being offered on a case-by-case basis conditional on the impact of a prospective tenant on existing tenant mix and the size of take-up,” Alintah affirmed.