The CARGAN-LOG joint venture (JV) between French real estate company Argan and retail company Carrefour has commenced construction on a new logistics platform in Caen, France.

The new 82,000m² platform will be leased to the retailer's supply chain business on a nine-year fixed-term lease.

ARGAN and Carrefour are creating this new Aut0nom logistics platform on a 30ha brownfield site near Caen.

A portion of the facility will be allocated to cold storage, with the remaining area devoted to ambient storage. This facility will also comprise 2,500m² of offices and social areas.

The project is anticipated to be completed in mid-2024.

Each site's heating, cooling, and lighting demands will be addressed by green energy, which will be created and used locally by building a solar power plant on the roof, in addition to batteries for energy storage.

The site's heating and cooling will be provided by electric air/water heat pumps, which claim to use significantly less energy than gas heaters and, hence, minimise CO₂ emissions by a factor of 12.

Additionally, the project involves an extensive plan to reforest the field and improve the surrounding areas.

ARGAN founder and supervisory board chairman Jean-Claude Le Lan said: “ARGAN is pursuing and strengthening its historic partnership with Carrefour, its main tenant client with over 20 running logistics sites.

"The creation of this joint venture, under which future logistics real estate developments with Carrefour will take place, is a win-win contract between two complementary entities.”