Welspun One Logistics Parks (WOLP), a comprehensive fund and development management platform with a focus on warehousing and commercial real estate, has successfully raised over ₹1,000 crore through its second Alternative Investment Fund (AIF), known as WOLP Fund 2, in just four months since its launch. This rapid fundraising underscores robust investor confidence in India’s warehousing and commercial sector prospects. Following the implementation of the Goods & Services Tax (GST) and the surge of e-commerce, the logistics and warehousing industry in India is on the path toward transformative growth, driven by escalating demand for new warehousing facilities.
The cumulative supply within India’s warehousing and commercial sector is projected to hit 516 million square feet by 2026, compared to 344 million square feet in H1 2023. Around 15 million square feet of unused inventory were added between January and June this year, with Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, and Bengaluru accounting for the largest share of this expansion, according to data from JLL India. Net absorption or unused rentals during H1 2023 amounted to 15 million square feet across India’s eight major cities. In terms of warehousing demand, Mumbai, Pune, and Delhi-NCR emerged as the top three locations driving demand during this period.
“The logistics and industrial sector have displayed resilience in the post-pandemic scenario. We expect that momentum will build in logistics and industrial leasing during the latter half of this year, potentially leading to an upward trend in rental rates in select markets in the near future,” noted Yogesh Shevade, Head of Logistics & Industrial, India, at JLL.
The surge in demand is playing a pivotal role in driving investments into the warehousing sector. In the previous year, Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC and Asia-Pacific-focused real estate services and investment firm ESR Group established a strategic collaboration, forming a $600 million joint venture aimed at acquiring core commercial and logistics properties in revenue-generating India. IndoSpace, a developer of industrial real estate and logistics parks backed by the Everstone Group, has outlined plans to invest over $1 billion in acquiring underutilized warehousing and logistics properties throughout India within the next two to three years.