VR to sell Helsinki HQ to hotel company

The national railway operator VR Group is going to sell its head office premises in Helsinki to a real estate investment company named Exilion, said VR in press release issued recently.

The real estate company will renovate the facilities to serve as a branch of the Scandic Hotels. The premises will be released from VR’s use in spring 2018, when the company transfers its head office operations to Iso Paja in Pasila which now belongs to the national broadcaster Yle.

The premises will be handed over to the new owner in June 2018. The value of the transaction is EUR 55 million.

Helsinki’s main railway station will remain in the ownership of VR and will be developed in the years to come to match future requirements.

In December 2014, VR Group announced its intention to move the head office.

There has been extensive interest in the historical premises on the national as well as international level and a large number of different operators discussed with the VR Group about purchasing the building.

“For VR Group, it was important to find an overall solution for this splendid site which complements and supports the development of the station area as a whole. A pivotal aim was also to ensure that the new owner and future user would appreciate the history of the building and have a sense of responsibility for the site in the years to come,” VR Group Property Director Ari Mäkinen said.

“We believe that Exilion and Scandic Hotels excellently fulfil all these important expectations and will complement the city structure in just the right way,” Mäkinen added.

The property will be owned by the limited partnership administered by Exilion Management Oy.

“We are satisfied and enthusiastic about the fact that we can plan and renovate the site together with Scandic. The location for the hotel is the best possible one, and Scandic as the largest hotel operator in the Nordic countries is a marvellous partner in the project,” said Exilion Managing Director Ari Talja.

Scandic Hotels will open a hotel consisting of 500 rooms in the facilities in 2020, which will splendidly complement the hotel provisions in Helsinki and respond to the growth in work- and leisure-time travel. This hotel, functioning as a Helsinki landmark, will be one of Scandic’s largest.

“For us, it is an honour to be able to open these historically significant premises to the public. We want to offer adventurous hotel stays to our clients that nurture the heritage left by Eliel Saarinen,” said Scandic Hotels Finland Managing Director Aki Käyhkö.

VR’s new head office facilities are currently under renovation at Iso Paja owned by the Finnish Broadcasting Company (Yleisradio Oy) in Länsi-Pasila. With the shift of the head office, VR’s personnel will get an opportunity to work in a modern mansion marked by an open operational culture. The move is also part of the company’s attempt to boost efficiency aimed at increasing its competitiveness.

“In co-operation with various parties, VR is actively processing its property, particularly with respect to the requirements of mass transit and logistics. For those properties that have no such need, the best solution from the perspective of VR, the owner and the market is always sought on a case-by-case basis,” said VR Group CEO Rolf Jansson.

The current office premises are more than 100 years old. By transferring to new facilities, VR’s personnel will be able to work more flexibly and effectively in premises designed for contemporary office work.