Petar Kolognat, CTP - We develop industrial parks in premium locations all over Serbia

CTP, a Dutch company specializing in the construction and leasing of logistics and industrial parks, has significantly expanded its presence in Serbia. As the European leader in this sector and a listed company on the Euronext Amsterdam, CTP`s projects now span across our country, from Sombor in the north to Niš in the south. After successful investments in major hubs like Belgrade and Novi Sad, increasing client demand has driven the company to expand into additional locations, such as Jagodina.

- We see the advantage primarily in the fact that the industrial real estate market is much more mature. It was very challenging to explain key commercial items of the contract such as indexation to clients. Today it is considered a market standard. Another advantage we also see is that the demands of clients are becoming more and more rigorous, so the spaces that we offer, which are A class spaces with a green certificate, are experiencing an increasing demand.

As for the challenges, I would definitely point out the construction costs and the issue of labor, which was much more available six years ago.

- Prices of construction materials significantly affect the implementation and profitability of projects for sure. During the last six years, we have formed a very strong team, especially in the part of construction and procurement, we are developing the most square footage on the market and we manage to balance the effect of material prices without affecting CTP`s high standard of construction quality.

- The first and most important step is to choose the location. CTP selects only plots in premium locations for acquisition, which are close to main roads, large cities with existing infrastructure and available labor.

We always start by listening to our customers and seeing what their priorities are. Is it the availability of labor, the range of salaries they would offer, proximity to airports, railways, proximity to their suppliers or customers. We also act as consultants to our clients, i.e. as experts for this market, and we only offer them locations that meet their requirements. That`s exactly why we started the strategy of developing locations all over Serbia, so we always have a suitable option to offer.

- The infrastructure development has a great influence on the interest of clients, and thus on our decision to invest somewhere. In particular, the development of infrastructure contributed to the purchase of a plot of land in Sombor. The "Osmeh Vojvodine" road project is being developed there, which will connect Sombor with the main highway network. The development of highways in Hungary and Croatia also contributed to the decision, which will connect Sombor with the highway network in the Schengen zone with the planned truck terminal at the Bački Breg border crossing.

- The biggest difference is the lack of considerable demand from foreign logistics companies. For instance, some of CTP`s largest clients at the group level, leading European logistics companies, have a very limited presence in our market. In Serbia, domestic companies are still dominant.

As for the other locations, in Šimanovci - CTPark Belgrade West and Novi Banovci, CTPark Belgrade North, new spaces are planned and we are continuing the development of these parks. It always remains the goal to have additional plots for further development in each existing CTPark and to enable existing clients to further expand.