Citycon has started the redevelopment of the Koskikeskus shopping centre in downtown Tampere, which will be extended by 1,500 m2, bringing the total leasable area to 28,600 m2.

The Nordic retail specialist will invest EUR 38 mln in the project, which is due for completion in November 2012. Koskikeskus will remain open during the entire duration of the project.

'We aim to further strengthen Koskikeskus' position as the leading shopping centre in Tampere and increase its value. The Tampere region is, just like the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, an area of strong growth,' said Michael Schönach, the new head of Citycon's Finnish Operations who took office in March. 'After the redevelopment project, Koskikeskus will offer several retail brands that are new to Tampere, or even to Finland.'

Koskikeskus is Citycon's fourth-largest shopping centre in Finland and it offers over 80 different retail stores and services. The shopping centre was built in 1988 and it was previously partly refurbished in 1995. In 2010, Koskikeskus generated sales of EUR 116 mln.

Separately, Citycon said its turnover rose to EUR 52 mln in the first quarter of 2011, from EUR 50 mln in Q4 2010. Net rental income increased by 2% to EUR 32.4 mln in the first three months of the year, mostly as a result of the completion of Espoontori, Forum in Jyväskylä and Åkersberga Centrum. Operating profit fell 7.1% to EUR 28.2 mln.

'During the period Citycon entered a new line of business by taking up the management responsibility for the commercial management - including the leasing of retail premises - and marketing of Kämp Galleria, a shopping centre in the heart of Helsinki,' said Marcel Kokkeel, who earlier this year was appointed as new Chief Executive of Citycon. 'This fits well into our ambition to better serve the tenants by offering the top downtown location in addition to the retail range of our own shopping centres.'

In 2011, Citycon's turnover is forecast to grow by EUR 10-22 mln compared with the EUR 195.9 mln booked in 2010 while its direct operating profit is set to increase by EUR 6-15 mln compared with EUR 157.7 mln the previous year.