Perron buys Westfield centre stake for $575m

Privately-owned Perth company Perron Group has added to its vast property portfolio by purchasing a 50 per cent stake in Sydney's Westfield Burwood shopping centre for $575 million.

The half-share deal with ASX-listed Scentre Group represents a 4.1 per cent premium to the shopping centre's $1.1 billion book value at the end of 2018.

Scentre said it will use the proceeds to repay debt.

Perron Group chief executive Ross Robertson said the company was excited by the unique opportunity to invest in one of the highest quality shopping centres in Australia.

"Westfield Burwood is one of the top 50 shopping centres in Australia with customer visitation of more than 14 million per annum and total retail sales of close to $500 million," he said.

Perron Group has net assets of about $4 billion, most of which is invested in a small number of premium property assets, including about 12 major shopping centres.

Its assets include 50 per cent holdings in Galleria Shopping Centre in Morley and the Central park office tower in Perth's CBD.

The group's capacity to invest in the Burwood asset may have been helped by a decision in February to scrap the planned $500 million expansion of Galleria, which Perron Group jointly owns with Vicinity Centres.

Founder Stan Perron passed away in December last year but the board and mangement structure he established meant the group's operations have been largely unaffected.

Perth lawyer Laurence Iffla, who has been a director of Perron Group since 1991 and deputy chair since 2016, was appointed chairman of the privately held group.