Warehouse real estate and machinery market in 2024

New warehousing facilities are being commissioned in Russia, and sales of warehouse equipment are growing in parallel.

As of September 2024, 47.1 million square meters of quality warehouse real estate is ready for use in Russia. The largest part of it is in Moscow and Moscow region (53%), 11% in St. Petersburg and the region, and the remaining 36% in other regions. According to NF Group forecasts, by the end of the year the volume of quality supply of warehouse space may exceed 50 mln sq. m.

Regions show growth of warehouse space

More than 1.5 million sq. m of new warehouses appeared in Russia in January-September 2024. Most of them - 950 thousand sq. m. or 60% of the completed construction - were commissioned in the regions. Regions demonstrate growth in the volume of concluded transactions in warehouse real estate. According to NF Group data, since the beginning of the year the volume of transactions amounted to 4 million sq. m, of which 51% (more than 2 million sq. m) were concluded in the regions. It is predicted that by the end of the year another 3 million sq. m. of transactions may be concluded.

The share of vacant warehouse space remains at a historical minimum and does not exceed 1%. In Moscow less than 0.1% of warehouse space is vacant, in St. Petersburg - about 0.5%, in other regions - no more than 0.4%. Along with the shortage of space, rental rates are also growing. In the Moscow region the weighted average cost of 1 sq. m. per year triple net (speculative space of class A) is 11,000 rubles, in St. Petersburg and the region - 9,500 rubles, in other regions - 9,150 rubles.

"Stable high demand, low vacancy rate and continued growth of rental rates show that the warehouse real estate market remains attractive for both tenants and developers. It is expected that in the coming years we will see a further increase in the volume of construction and transactions in this segment“, - commented Konstantin Fomichenko, partner of NF Group, on the prospects of the warehouse real estate market.

Sales of warehouse equipment increased

In Russia not only new warehouses are being actively built, but also existing ones are being modernized, so the need for high-quality and modern warehouse equipment is felt more and more strongly. Thus, according to the results of the first half of 2024, sales of electric stackers increased by 50%, demand for electric trucks increased by 75% and for reach trucks by 55%. Forklift sales remained unchanged, which confirms the stability of demand for this type of equipment for warehouses and production facilities. The leading positions in forklift sales in Russia are held by Chinese companies Hangcha Group, HELI and TRF.

According to Dmitry Vasiliev, Head of Sales at Cargo Mechanics, the development prospects for the warehouse equipment market lie in the increasing use of lithium-ion battery-powered equipment and the integration of IT solutions. From the point of view of process automation, a promising direction can be called the use of robot transporters, which can take up to 80% of the picker's work in the warehouse. The use of new technologies and modern equipment will increase the efficiency of warehouse operations.

Demonstrate warehouse equipment and technologies at SkladTech

At the special exposition of warehouse equipment and technologies SkladTech companies can demonstrate warehouse equipment. The offer will be appreciated by the professional audience of cargo owners and representatives of transportation and logistics and forwarding companies - 13,157 specialists visited the exposition in 2024. SkladTech is held at the same venue as TransRussia, the largest logistics exhibition in Russia and the CIS. TransRussia exhibitors with their own warehouses can become potential clients of SkladTech participants.

Sources: Cre.ru, РБК Companies, Forklift.blog