Mainor Ülemiste signed an agreement to purchase 51% of Technopolis Ülemiste shares, thereby once again becoming the sole developer of Ülemiste City. The transaction will enter into force once approved by the Competition Authority. 

Fifteen years ago, the largest business campus in the Baltics was solely owned by Ülo Pärnits. However, in 2010, Mainor Ülemiste and the Finnish stock exchange company Technopolis Plc created a joint venture, Technopolis Ülemiste, of which Estonians owned 49% and Technopolis 51%. Approximately one-third of the developed land in Ülemiste City became the property of Technopolis. 

Guido Pärnits, the Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Mainor Ülemiste and the primary owner of Ülemiste City relishes the opportunity to buy a company that will enable the effective development of Ülemiste City as a unique hub for smart business. “My father sold a significant part of his business in a difficult year, and we are making a long-planned buyback transaction also in an economically difficult time, which may seem like a somewhat unexpected step. In any case, he would be happy for us. Difficulties are there to become stronger and wiser by overcoming them.” 

“The deal that my father signed with Technopolis in 2010 gave us more development capacity, and we have realized these opportunities with both campus developers, including Technopolis Ülemiste, until today. Even though our participation in Technopolis Ülemiste was 49%, we have been able to move Ülemiste City forward as a whole, and it is noteworthy that the equity capital of Technopolis Ülemiste has increased significantly in those years,” explained Guido Pärnits. “Of course, the parent company Mainor AS has played a key role in the conceptual development of the campus, but we cannot underestimate the contribution of Technopolis as a partner. However, in recent years, we realized that their development has slowed down, and their decision to sell the company came at the right moment, in my opinion. Looking back at everything we have been able to achieve in a relatively short time, and to be successful not only in our own business activities but also a strong and substantial partner for the city of Tallinn and the state of Estonia, it was our wish to buy Technopolis ourselves and thus become the largest office real estate developer in Estonia.” 

The company, which will become whole again, has nearly 30 hectares of land to be developed on the campus and, according to detailed plans, 500,000 m2 of undeveloped land. In 18 years, a total of 167,000 m2 of office space, health centers and residential areas have been developed in Ülemiste City. A new health center and an educational quarter with a community building are currently being built. So far, developments have been made for 300 million euros, while the investment volume of Technopolis Ülemiste makes up approximately one-third of this. 

The new company will acquire almost a fifth of the office real estate targeted for the market in Tallinn. 

“We have many plans and opportunities for the Ülemiste area. The biggest challenges lie in cooperation with the city and the state to develop the Ülemiste traffic hub located next to the Rail Baltica terminal, the airport and the Ülemiste Shopping Center. We want to build the European park with a landmark high-rise building that will economically empower the region and all of Estonia. In addition to these developments, it is also important to build tunnels under the railway so that the accessibility of the campus is worthy of the local companies and the region,” said Guido Pärnits. 

Ülemiste City is Estonia’s third-largest taxpayer in terms of labor taxes. The campus’s annual turnover is more than 2.4 billion, half of which is the export of the ICT sector.