Merlin Secures €3.75 Billion Syndicated Loan to Fund Data Center Expansion Across Spain and Portugal

Merlin Properties, Spain's largest listed real estate company, has refinanced its corporate debt through a €3.75 billion syndicated loan, a transaction the company described as one of the largest financial operations in the history of the Spanish real estate sector. The Ibex 35-listed SOCIMI (Spanish REIT) disclosed the move in a filing with the country's securities regulator, the CNMV, on Monday, stating that a portion of the proceeds will be allocated to covering future financing needs, particularly the development of its data center program in Spain and Portugal.

The financing, structured as what Merlin calls "sustainable corporate financing," was provided by a mix of domestic and international banks and is divided into two tranches: a term loan (Tranche A) and a revolving credit facility (Tranche B). The term loan comprises two disbursements, both maturing in April 2032. The first, totaling €725 million and scheduled for drawdown on November 3, 2026, will be used to prepay an existing syndicated loan maturing in 2028. The second, amounting to €1.525 million with availability through April 30, 2027, will fund the repayment of a €500 million bond maturing in July 2027 as well as investment in data centers. In addition, Merlin has upsized its revolving credit facility from €740 million to €1.5 billion.

In parallel, the company redeemed an €800 million bond maturing on the same day, using available treasury funds from financings arranged in previous years. According to the filing, this combination of operations "significantly reinforces the company's credit profile, eliminates maturities over the next three years and provides ample financial flexibility to execute its growth strategy, while maintaining a reduced leverage level of 25%," measured in terms of loan-to-value ratio.

The refinancing comes as Merlin accelerates its buildout of data center capacity. The company's first phase, comprising 64 MW with €614 million in investment across facilities in Getafe (Madrid), Barcelona and Álava, is already built and is expected to be operationally stabilized by 2027. A second phase, currently under construction and slated for full completion by 2030, will add 254 MW at a projected investment of €2.756 billion, for which Merlin says it already has sufficient resources following its recent capital increase. The second phase includes an additional 80 MW in Lisbon following expansions in Getafe and Álava. A third phase will add 406 MW by 2032 at an estimated investment of €4.406 billion, extending capacity in Álava and Lisbon and adding 144 MW in Zaragoza. A fourth phase contemplates a further facility in Navalmoral de la Mata (Cáceres), split into two stages of 200 MW and an additional 1.2 GW.

In total, Merlin expects to reach 724 megawatts of data center capacity, which is projected to generate approximately €1.14 billion in revenue by 2032, compared with €291.7 million in total revenue recorded across all its businesses in the first half of 2026. The company, led by CEO Ismael Clemente, owns properties valued at €13.508 billion, spanning office buildings, shopping centers, logistics warehouses and, increasingly, a data center development portfolio. Alongside its data center investments, Merlin has maintained strict financial discipline, selling its BBVA office portfolio for nearly €2 billion, raising €767 million in a capital increase this year and now refinancing debt to clear near-term maturities. The transaction underscores the growing capital intensity of Europe's data center buildout and highlights how listed real estate vehicles are increasingly turning to large-scale syndicated financing to fund digital infrastructure pipelines.