The Europe and African operation of Japanese shipping giant Mitsui OSK Lines is to move into new £169m ($229m) offices in central London, the company said on Monday.
MOL’s property arm, Daibiru Corp, bought the office building as part of a group strategy to expand outside of core shipping operations to limit volatility during a downturn.
The new building, Capital House, is near the Bank of England, major banks and investors and marine insurance players.
The 2003-built property, which has 11 floors, is expected to be the new Europe-Africa headquarters for the MOL group, which will relocate from its current offices less than 2 km away.
Other London-based parts of the group are also expected to relocate to Capital House, the company said.
The deal is Daibiru’s first in the UK.
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MOL’s “Blue Action 2035” corporate plan said property would be part of its non-shipping investment strategy, which would also include offshore wind farms, alternative fuels and logistics.
Its latest results revealed the dramatic impact of geopolitics and tariffs on the fortunes of its core shipping markets.
It reported a net profit of ¥425.4bn ($2.8bn) for its 2024 financial year but said that could be slashed by more than half in 2025 because of the US-led global trade war, tariffs and other market uncertainties.
MOL said on Monday that it will “continue to actively pursue real-estate projects overseas”.
The office building has been acquired from property investment manager Barings, which bought it in 2021 for £130.5m ($177m) before refurbishing some of the vacant floors.