HCL to sell office assets in Bengaluru
HCL Technologies Ltd plans to sell its office assets in Bengaluru as part of its strategy to monetise non-core real estate assets and streamline operations, said multiple aware of the matter.
The software services company is looking to divest its special economic zone campus, situated in the Jigani industrial area, covering 27 acres with a total area of 1.6 million square feet.
A potential sale could fetch HCL Tech around Rs 550 crore, said the people cited above.
“HCL has, in the past year, monetised many assets as it exited the hardware business. For them, it is a non-core business. The move is to consolidate operations across different cities,” one of the persons said.
HCL Tech had also acquired more than 6.5 acres of land in Chennai last year with a built-up area of 5.5 lakh sq ft. “The deal was concluded last year, and HCL is also looking at more asset monetisation,” said another person aware of the company’s real estate portfolio realignment process.
Previously, a spokesperson for HCL Tech had said that “the company plans on bringing 70–75% of the workforce back in office by the end of the current year.”
Responding to ET’s latest queries, a HCL Tech spokesperson said: “As a policy, we do not comment on market speculation.”
The total headcount in the company stood at 221,139 as of September 2023.
During the September quarter, HCL Tech’s workforce was reduced by 2,299 employees, while it added 3,630 freshers. The company had an attrition rate of 14.2% in the quarter.
The transition to hybrid work after the pandemic is impacting India’s real estate landscape, emphasising the importance of collaboration rather than just physical occupancy. As a result, IT companies are adjusting their property portfolios accordingly.
Office space absorption in the major property markets hit an 18-month peak in the September quarter. Recent data reveals a significant surge, with leasing reaching a six-quarter high of 10.37 million sq ft across the top seven office property markets, marking a 30% increase from the previous quarter.
