HOUSTON-A decision to hold the 253,838-square-foot Guhn Road Distribution Center for a single tenant rather than leasing to many paid off for the asset’s owner, the McShane Development Co./MetLife Real Estate Investments alliance. In waiting for the right one to come along, the joint venture found Forum Energy Technologies Inc., and struck a deal for a 10-year lease with the company.

The tenant, which serves the global energy industry’s drilling, production and infrastructure segments, agreed to a triple-net deal. Forum Energy Technologies will take residence in its new digs at 6535 Guhn Rd. in Jan. 2012. According to Joseph C. Llamas, senior development manager with McShane Development Co.’s Austin, TX office, the transaction involves a consolidation of five facilities around Houston.

Llamas tells GlobeSt.com that discussions with Forum Energy Technologies had been going on for about a year, with the size requirements changing. Forum Energy Technologies is the result of a five-way merger between Forum Oilfield Technologies, Triton Group, Subsea Services International, Global Flow Technologies and Allied Technology and, given the company’s growth, the space needs kept changing.

“It started out with them needing half a building, then the requirement grew to 180,000 square feet, and then grew from there,” Llamas explains, crediting brokers on both sides of the negotiating table for moving the deal along. Steve Hesse and Ed Frantz of CB Richard EllisKyle Valentine represented Forum Energy Technologies in the transaction while and Justin Robinson of Stream Realty Partners LP represented the McShane / MetLife development alliance.

Though financial details of the transaction were not disclosed, similar buildings in the area lease for $.36 per square foot to $.38 per square foot. TIs are part of the Forum Energy Technologies deal, with 20,000 square feet dedicated to office space and the remainder to be used for warehouse and distribution activities.

Llamas says construction on Guhn Road Distribution Center was launched in 2008 as a speculative project. He says the economy’s issues did stand in the way of getting the building leased, but because Houston didn’t lose as many jobs as other regions, “we saw quite a few users coming through to look at the space, especially smaller users.”

Rather than divide the center into smaller parcels, however, the JV decided to find a single, large tenant. “Given the location and characteristic of this project, we felt like we wanted to wait for the right user,” Llamas comments. “Once we found Forum, we worked hard with them to close the deal.”

Llamas goes on to say that the McShane Development Company / MetLife Real Estate Investments alliance isn’t building anything right now in Houston, spec or otherwise. But this isn’t stopping the partners from looking for potential opportunities in and around the region, he adds.