The Imperial Shipyard changes hands — Develia plans 3,000 homes in central Gdańsk

The transaction

Develia has signed a preliminary agreement to acquire 100% of the shares in Stocznia Cesarska Development, which holds the rights to the property. The seller is the Belgian consortium Gdansk Development Holding N.V. (the firms Alides and Revive). The transaction is worth about PLN 550 million — covering the price of the shares and the settlement of the company’s financial liabilities. The deposit is PLN 55 million. Develia declares it will finance the purchase from its own funds, but is also analysing external capital. “Signing the preliminary agreement is an important first step towards delivering the project in an iconic part of the former shipyard site,” said Andrzej Ośliżło, CEO of Develia. The company brings to the deal not only the land but also part of the design documentation and the administrative decisions already obtained, which shortens the path to starting construction.

The site: part of Młode Miasto

The plot is a 16-hectare part of Młode Miasto — a post-industrial area on Gdańsk’s former shipyard grounds that has been under development for years. The Imperial Shipyard (German: Kaiserliche Werft Danzig) was founded in the mid-19th century: in 1844 Prussia bought land here for a base and a repair yard. After the Second World War the site was incorporated into the Gdańsk Shipyard. The Belgian consortium bought the land in 2017 and spent nearly a decade preparing it for development — it drew up a development concept, obtained planning decisions and renovated some of the historic buildings. Develia is therefore entering a site with part of the documentation ready, rather than an empty plot.

A waterfront location

The site lies on the Dead Vistula, close to the main railway station and the Old Town. According to market reports it is the first waterfront-type project in Develia’s portfolio — with access to water and in the strict city centre, rather than on the outskirts.

Scale

The plans call for a multi-stage residential and commercial project with over 220,000 sq m of usable space and ultimately more than 3,000 units. A building permit has already been issued for the first stage: 388 residential and 31 commercial units. Work may start in 2027, provided the transaction is closed. It is an investment spread over many years and successive phases.

Conditions: ministerial consent and the right of first refusal

The transaction remains at the preliminary-agreement stage. Closing is scheduled for 20 December 2026 and depends on conditions precedent. The most important are the consent of the relevant minister and the State Treasury not exercising its right of first refusal over the shares. The already-revitalised historic Directorate and Fire Station buildings have been excluded from the transaction. On a site of such significance, the developer therefore operates not only by market logic but also under conservation supervision and with the involvement of the public side.

Why it matters

Large, financially strong developers are returning to difficult sites in city centres. The success of such an investment is decided not by sales alone, but by the ability to run a multi-year process amid heritage buildings, public offices and the local community. For Develia it is land that — if the conditions are met — will feed sales for a whole decade.