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Spear Reit has received Competition Commission approval for its acquisition of Watergate shopping centre in Cape Town, paving the way for the transaction to be completed.The company said on Friday that the acquisition is expected to be finalised once ownership of the property is transferred, which it expects to occur in August.Spear announced in April it had agreed to buy Watergate and its rental business in Mitchells Plain, in the Cape Flats area of Cape Town, from MPW Cape Properties for R442m.The centre has about 19,642m2 of retail space and, according to Spear, was almost fully occupied when the acquisition was announced. Its largest tenants include Shoprite, Brights Hardware, Clicks, Mr Price, Pepkor, Ackermans, Capitec Bank and KFC.At the time of the announcement, Spear said the acquisition forms part of its strategy of expanding its portfolio of convenience retail properties in the Western Cape. The company said the centre serves Mitchells Plain and surrounding communities and generates rental income from a broad mix of tenants.Read: Is AI emptying offices? Spear says no The company also said it sees opportunities to increase the property’s income as tenant leases come up for renewal. At the time of the acquisition announcement, many leases were due to expire in the next two years. Spear said many tenants are established national retailers, which it believes increases the likelihood that they will renew their leases.Spear expects the centre to generate rental income of about R67m in its first full year of ownership to end-February 2028. The company said it plans to fund the purchase through a combination of credit and existing cash resources.The Watergate Centre acquisition follows other Spear investments in the Western Cape. In October 2025, the company completed its R455m acquisition of Maynard Mall, a convenience shopping centre in Wynberg, a southern suburb in Cape Town. More recently, Spear announced plans to acquire a portfolio of three office buildings at 1 Sportica Crescent in Tygervalley, Bellville, one of Cape Town’s main commercial hubs in the northern suburbs, for R960m. The proposed acquisition, announced in May, is also awaiting Competition Commission approval.In its results for the year to end-February, Spear said it remained focused on growing its Western Cape portfolio through acquisitions and new developments across the retail, industrial and commercial property sectors.
