Major project at the GVZ Bremen: Panattoni and Nagel-Group develop new mega-center for food logistics

With the joint development of a modern food hub in the Bremen freight village (GVZ), the industrial, logistics and commercial real estate developer Panattoni and the Nagel-Group, one of the leading food logistics companies in Europe, are continuing their successful partnership. The project with a total area of 36,650 m² is planned as the new regional location of the Nagel-Group.

The new location will be built from October 2026 on the 90,510 m², last contiguous plot on the GVZ site. Completion and handover are expected to take place in December 2027.

The project, with a total of around 29,500 m² of hall space, 5,200 m² of modern office and social space and 1,950 m² of mezzanine space, is designed as a build-to-suit property precisely to meet the requirements of the food logistics company. Building features include a cross-dock terminal and a logistics building with temperature-controlled areas for ambient, fresh and ultra-fresh for food storage and handling.

The equipment also includes a representative four-storey office building as well as a truck workshop with a car wash, a petrol station and an extensive charging infrastructure for trucks, cars and bicycles. In addition, 68 truck and trailer parking spaces will be created on the company premises.

Lars-Erik Poths, CEO of the Nagel-Group, explains: "The new logistics centre in Bremen is an investment in the future of food logistics. The new location will combine state-of-the-art logistics processes with a sustainable energy concept and creates the conditions for further growth. At the same time, modern jobs are being created in one of Germany's most important logistics regions."

Fred-Markus Bohne, Managing Partner Panattoni DACH & Nordics, says: "The project is proof of how important the close partnership between all parties involved is. In this way, we were able to develop a concept at an early planning stage that is optimally tailored to the requirements of the Nagel-Group and was able to convince the Bremen Economic Development Corporation and the city's authorities involved with its economic orientation and high sustainability standards."

Kristina Vogt, Senator for Economic Affairs, Ports and Transformation, welcomes the investment: "Our freight village is Germany's leading freight transport centre and has also been at the forefront of Europe since 2020. The project development now being pursued at the location impressively shows how much demand the location continues to be. Around 400 new jobs will be created here, many of them in training. And with its own solar energy and fossil-free heating, the project is also setting standards in climate protection. It is precisely such settlements that show how economic strength and transformation go together."

Andreas Heyer, Chairman of the Management Board of WFB Wirtschaftsförderung Bremen GmbH, sums up: "This commercial property in the GVZ is unique in several respects and we have been able to win a real estate developer and a user for the location, whose commitment will contribute to the success story of the GVZ and Bremen as a business location in the long term."

With its new subsidiary, the Nagel-Group is strengthening its presence in northern Germany. Around 400 new jobs are expected to be created at this future location, including around 20 apprenticeships.

The overall energy concept plays a central role in the development of the logistics hub in the Bremen freight village. To supply the site with energy, the use of an electricity storage system in combination with photovoltaic systems is planned. The battery storage system enables the intermediate storage of self-generated solar power and its needs-based use. Thanks to its safe, low-maintenance and scalable technology as well as the use of predominantly recyclable raw materials without rare earths, it supports a sustainable and reliable energy supply. The heat supply is fossil-free via a heating and cooling system with integrated building management system. The aim is to achieve DGNB Gold certification.

Thanks to its trimodal connections by road, rail and water, the Bremen freight village is one of the most efficient logistics locations in Europe. The immediate proximity to the A281, short distances to the A1 and A27, the proximity to Bremen Airport and the good accessibility of Bremerhaven, Wilhelmshaven and Hamburg through Germany's second largest seaport and an inland port create ideal conditions for national and international flows of goods.