Masdar-backed real estate fund snaps up ‘green’ buildings: The UAE’s renewable giant’s Masdar Green real estate investment trust (REIT) acquired property assets worth AED 934 mn (USD 254 mn) in Abu Dhabi, according to a statement. The REIT secured USD 200 mn in green financing from First Abu Dhabi Bank to grow its portfolio earlier this year, Wam reported.

What is Masdar Green REIT? Owned by Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund Mubadala, Masdar Green REIT is the UAE’s first real estate trust to invest in sustainable assets only, with its portfolio centered in Abu Dhabi’s Masdar City. In 2018, Masdar received the MENA region’s first green revolving credit facility.

Masdar Green REIT is on a roll: Over the past couple of years, the trust has increased its assets twofold and is mulling over expanding its sustainable realty development across the GCC and MENA region. Its current portfolio value is AED 1.91 bn and with ‘further assets identified for potential future investments’.

What is so ‘green’ about these buildings? They are platinum and gold LEED certified — acknowledged industry standards for building system efficiency, sustainability, water efficiency, materials used for construction, and environmental quality. “The properties within the Masdar Green REIT’s current portfolio consume approximately 40% less electricity and water than comparable buildings in Abu Dhabi,” REIT chairman Abdulla Balalaa told Gulf Business earlier this year.

SOUND SMART- What does it mean to be LEED-certified? To be LEED-certified, a building’s construction and operations must emit a maximum of 0.009 tonnes of CO2 per square ft, according to performance measurement platform Arc, which is affiliated to the US Green Business Council that developed the LEED system and issues the certifications. Gold-certified buildings should see emissions capped at 0.006 tonnes per square ft, while Platinum LEED buildings shouldn’t emit more than 0.004 tonnes of CO2 per square ft.