Shurgard Self Storage Europe SARL, the European affiliate of U.S.-based real estate investment trust (REIT) Public Storage Inc., has agreed to by five Pelican Self Storage facilities in Sweden. The deal is expected to close tomorrow, with Shurgard taking over the properties on July 1. All five assets will be rebranded under the Shurgard name, increasing the operator’s presence in Sweden to 36 locations. Two of the facilities are in Östergötland, with one each in Örebro, Stockholm and Västmanland, according to a press release.

“Sweden has always been a strong and stable market for Shurgard,” said Marc Oursin, CEO. “We are pleased to reinforce our presence and coverage in this country, which allows us to offer convenient, accessible and cost-efficient storage solutions to more people.”

The acquisitions are the first this year for Shurgard. The company acquired one storage property last year in Paris. It expects to add another Stockholm location this year through development, and has two facilities under construction in Berlin, the release stated.

The company announced earlier this month that it’s considering an initial public offering. Public Storage acquired Shurgard Storage Centers Inc. in August 2006. In March 2008, the REIT sold 51 percent of its interest to an institutional investor and now acts as the managing member of the joint venture.

Once the deal is complete, Shurgard will own and operate 227 self-storage facilities with more than 12 million net rentable square feet in Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, The Netherlands, Sweden and in the United Kingdom.

Based in Glendale, Calif., Public Storage also has interests in 2,392 self-storage facilities in 38 states, with approximately 159 million net rentable square feet.