Austria's Immofinanz said on Friday that it is 'taking a growth and optimisation step in Warsaw' with the purchase of the 49% interest it did not already own in the Class A Equator office scheme and the adjoining Nimbus office development project from its partner, developer Karimpol.

'Warsaw is currently the most attractive market for office properties in Eastern Europe,' the company said.

As part of the transaction, Karimpol is taking over Immofinanz' 51% stake in the adjacent Cirrus development project in the Ochota district, thereby becoming the sole owner of the asset. A confidentiality agreement was signed between the two parties regarding the financial details of the deal.

'This transaction represents a further important milestone in the implementation of our strategy to take over the full responsibility for projects and thereby optimise our investment structure,' commented Manfred Wiltschnigg of Immofinanz' executive board.

Equator, Nimbus and Cirrus were part of a joint venture established in 2006. The Equator building was completed in 2008 and offers over 19,000 m2 of fully-let rentable space. The 20,000-m2 Nimbus development project is currently in an advanced planning stage and is expected to start at the beginning of 2012.