Pieter Puelinckx MRICS

Pieter is well known as a leading real estate, M&A, construction law and (project) finance law practitioner in Belgium.

Pieter’s real estate and M&A practice includes the structuring of real estate projects (offices, hotels, residential, retail and industrial), sale-and-leaseback transactions and joint ventures. He handles both asset real estate and corporate/M&A real estate transactions.

Pieter regularly advises clients on construction and development transactions including EPC contracts and general contract agreements.

Pieter's (project) finance practice covers project finance transactions, including those relating to the energy transition, as well as the financing aspects of real estate transactions.

Pieter also advises on the capital markets dimension of real estate deals, including public and private Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs). He has specialist expertise in the retail space, advising investors and developers on shopping centre and luxury retail transactions. He has also gained significant experience in the care sector, handling acquisitions, divestments, financings and construction deals.

Over the past 25 years, Pieter has focused on public-private-partnership (PPP) transactions where he assists sponsors, banks and investment funds with bids and transactional structuring.

Work highlights

Pieter has led on many of the market’s major real estate transactions. These include advising:

• R4 PPP for Besix Stadsbader Infrastructure deal of the year

• La Française Real Estate Partners International (representing a club of Korean and French investors) on the acquisition of the shares of North Light and Pole Star, which together own the North Light and Pole Star buildings, as well as on the financing of the transaction
• CBRE Investment Management on the structuring and incorporation of a joint venture with a real estate developer (specialized in logistic buildings), including the subsequent acquisition of nine special purpose vehicles, each owning one or more logistic asset respectively in Belgium, Denmark, Luxembourg and Sweden
• Ineos on all Belgian aspects of its €3.5bn project for the development and operation of an ethane cracker in the Port of Antwerp
• DBFM Scholen van Morgen on the setting up of the PPP Project for the winning consortium and assistance with the subsequent refinancing of its existing Construction and Guaranteed Facilities.  DBFM Scholen van Morgen is the project company in charge of realizing the Flemish Schools Infrastructure project, the purpose of which is to build 200 new school in the Flanders Region by 2020.

Pieter regularly speaks at seminars.

Pieter studied law at the University of Leuven, holds a licence in economic law from the University of Louvain and a master’s in law from Heidelberg University, Germany, and from the University of Chicago Law School, U.S.

He speaks Afrikaans, Dutch, English, French and German.