Dundrum shopping owner Hammerson slumps to €1.9bn loss on Covid hits to flagship outlets

It also owns half of the Pavilions in Swords and has a significant minority stake in the Kildare Village complex

The 2020 financial statement shows that the valuation of its "Ireland flagships", such as Dundrum, fell at the end of December to £757m from £860m a year earlier. File Photo: Colin Keegan

Hammerson, the retail landlord that owns significant parts of shopping space in Ireland, posted a loss of £1.7bn (€1.9bn) for 2020, reflecting the huge write-downs on the valuations of its properties taken across its British, French and Irish centres from the Covid-19 crisis.  

The retail landlord owner is best known in Ireland for Dundrum Town Centre, Ireland’s largest mall, which it co-owns with Allianz, as well as for its co-ownership of the Ilac in Dublin city centre with Irish Life, and as a controller of the nearby 1916 battlefield site.

It also owns half of the Pavilions in Swords, with Irish Life and Iput owning the rest, and has a significant minority stake in the Kildare Village complex, as well as having in recent times exited Belfast with the sale of the Abbey Retail Park. 

While Hammerson said it would meet its liabilities at least the next 12 months, it warned about the impact of the coronavirus on the retail sector and the broader economies in Britain and Ireland. 

The huge writedowns have hit the valuations across all its European properties, which include London's Brent Cross and Birmingham's Bullring, as well as flagship centres in Paris and Barcelona. 

In Ireland, the 2020 financial statement shows that the valuation of its "Ireland flagships" fell at the end of December to £757m from £860m a year earlier. 

For the group, Hammerson said that the fallout from the Covid crisis was "unknown". 

"However, it has accelerated many pre-existing trends – a further shift to online, more home working and changing travel patterns – resulting in fewer and more focussed destination trips," it said. 

Hammerson shares which are listed in London and Dublin rose 4.5% to value the firm at £1.37bn. However, its stock market value has slumped 50% since the onset of the Covid crisis a year ago.