Nagelmackers moves into a flagship green building of Nextensa and ION

Press release

19 December 2022 – 7.30 AM CEST

Nagelmackers moves into a flagship green building of Nextensa and ION

Nagelmackers is celebrating its 275th anniversary by moving into Monteco, the brand new state-of-the-art office building built by Nextensa in joint-venture with ION, renowned developers of sustainable and quality real estate. The name of the building is a contraction of the word 'Montoyer' (a reference to the street where the building is located) and the word 'ecological'. A logical combination of the "best of both worlds" in terms of location and sustainability.

Nagelmackers, Nextensa and ION announce the commissioning of Monteco, a brand new 'fossil fuel free' office building in the European Quarter that meets the high quality standards of renowned property developers Nextensa and ION. The real estate players strive to build a portfolio of only high-quality properties that meet the highest standards of architecture and sustainability. The move to the new headquarters of Bank Nagelmackers is perfectly in line with its image as a personal and private bank. Archi2000, Monteco's architect, opted for a unique concept in the heart of Brussels, which is characterised by the combination of a sustainable wood-frame construction and the use of intelligent technology. A truly state-of-the-art building, in other words!

"As a real estate developer, in addition to innovation and architecture, we are strongly committed to CO2 reduction and compensation. Building with wood has a double advantage in this respect: on the one hand, less CO2 is released into the air as compared to the production of concrete, and on the other hand, large amounts of CO2 are absorbed by the trees used in the construction, which are replaced by new plantations," explains Alexis Spaas, Business Unit Manager Brabant at ION.

Dreaming about a green future

"Nagelmackers has been committed to greening its product range for several years. Since 2019, this has gained momentum with the signing of the UNPRI (United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment). The bank is also making great strides in relation to the SFDR (Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation). Most of the funds in its range, managed internally and selected externally, will be at least category 8 funds, which means they can be considered sustainable funds," explains Yves Van Laecke, COO of Nagelmackers.

A great architectural achievement

The wood used for the new Nagelmackers headquarters is PEFC certified and comes from a maximum radius of 500 km from the site. This is a beneficial situation.

"Heat pumps and solar panels have been installed, contributing to the heating and cooling needs. The large windows throughout the building provide wonderful light and a pleasant working environment. They are high from floor to ceiling, some three metres high, which gives a great impression of space," explains Olivier Vuylsteke, CIO of Nextensa.

This intelligent technology will reduce energy consumption, especially as the BMS system monitors temperature, humidity, ventilation, etc. Automatically reading water and electricity meters immediately detect any leakage.

A committed approach

The sustainability certificate that every sustainable building wants is the BREEAM certificate. This is an abbreviation for Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method. This label aims for sustainability without loss of comfort, safety or health.

"MONTECO is aiming for BREEAM Excellent certification, taking into account ten or so sustainability criteria. This is a high level in BREEAM certification. First of all, there is the design phase, for which we have obtained no less than 77%, whereas the standard to be achieved is 70%. Now there is the final post-construction phase. We are convinced that we will obtain this label by 2023," explained Michel Van Geyte, CEO of Nextensa.

"The customers have not been forgotten, of course! Nagelmackers will soon receive them at the Monteco agency in discreet but comfortable consultation rooms, equipped with modern audiovisual material, so that the bank can offer them personalised services on the spot and at a distance. In addition, all the equipment that is still in good condition deserves a second life and has been donated to charities and associations," concludes Dirk Huybrecht, Head of Marketing and Communication at Nagelmackers.

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Press contacts

Sara Gartili



Corporate Communications Manager Nextensa

M +32 (0)488 13 43 65

Camille Hourdain



Project Marketeer ION

M

Dirk Huybrecht



Head of Marketing & Communications Bank Nagelmackers

M +32 (0) 472 753 758

Gunther De Backer                                         

Partner, Backstage Communication                         

                                

M         

        

About Nextensa

Nextensa is a mixed real estate investor and developer. The company's investment portfolio is divided between the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg (46%), Belgium (41%) and Austria (13%) and has a total value of approximately EUR 1.35 billion as at 30/09/2022. As a developer, Nextensa is mainly active in the design of large urban developments. At Tour&Taxis (a development of more than 50,000 m²) in Brussels, Nextensa is building a mixed real estate portfolio consisting of a revaluation of emblematic buildings and new constructions. In Luxembourg (Cloche d'Or), it is working in partnership on a major urban extension of over 400,000 m² comprising offices, shops and housing.

Nextensa is listed on Euronext Brussels and has a market capitalisation of EUR 541.1 million (value 30/09/2022).

For more information, visit

About ION

ION is a fast-growing real estate developer and investor based in Waregem, founded in 2011 by Davy Demuynck, Kristof Vanfleteren and Paul Thiers. Its development portfolio of approximately €1.8 billion comprises more than 72 real estate projects spread throughout Belgium. Contemporary architecture, superior sustainability and innovation are at the heart of each project.

ION develops multifunctional and urban residential, office and retail projects with high added value that help shape the cities of tomorrow. Its dynamic team of more than 100 employees has the commercial, technical, financial and legal knowledge required for various residential and commercial real estate projects. ION can therefore meet today's highest standards, taking into account the expectations of all stakeholders.

In October 2018, ION opened an office in the centre of Brussels in order to have an active presence in Belgium's main real estate market. Since then, ION has also opened offices in Antwerp and Luxembourg.

Find out more about current projects at

About Nagelmackers

Bank Nagelmackers aims to be the partner of families in the creation, management and transfer of their assets.

The bank does this through a personal and private banking offer, where a service is possible from invested assets of at least 75,000 euros. Currently, the bank has 22 branches and 32 agents who propagate this strategy to their customers.

Nagelmackers meets the solvency and liquidity requirements: the solvency ratio (IFRS, Tier I) is 18.5% and the liquidity ratio is 183%.

For more information

Michel Van Geyte,

Chief Executive Officer

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