Tishman Speyer buys Sainsbury's London headquarters

LONDON (Reuters) - Tishman Speyer has snapped up the London headquarters of British grocer J Sainsbury as it hunts for more deals in London and Europe, the U.S. property developer said on Tuesday.

Tishman Speyer, which owns New York's Rockefeller Centre, said the 328,000 square foot building in London's Midtown district was leased to Sainsbury's through 2026. It did not disclose how much it paid to the scheme's former owner, Germany's Union Investment.

The office building also sits close to a station on London's Crossrail line, a train track being built to connect east and west London. Developers such British Land and Great Portland Estates have bought sites close to Crossrail's planned stations, betting that property values will rise as the line's 2018 operation date nears.

"This acquisition is consistent with our positive long term view of the European commercial real estate markets and is an excellent addition to our portfolio, which consists of signature properties leased to blue chip organizations," Tishman Speyer's co-CEOs Jerry and Rob Speyer said.

"We will continue to seek opportunities in London and on the European continent."

(Reporting by Brenda Goh; editing by James Davey)