A consortium comprising UOL Group has been awarded the tender for the integrated residential and commercial site at Hougang at a tender price of $1.5 billion.
The consortium, which includes the company’s JV company Horizon Residential (Residential SPV), and a wholly-owned sub-trust of CICT, submitted the bid last Dec.
The site is a leasehold of 99 years, with a land area of 46,899.4 square metres. It is a mixed use development comprising a residential and commercial development integrated with an MRT station, a bus interchange and town plaza.
Residential SPV is a 50-50 JV company between Secure Venture Development and CL Emerald, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of CapitaLand Group. Secure Venture Development is a 20-60-20 JV company between Singland Residential Develoipment, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company, and UOL Venture Investments, a wholly-owned subsidiary of UOL Group, and Kheng Leong Company (Private) Limited.
The effective shareholding proportion in Residential SPV is SingLand at 10%, UOL at 30%, KLC at 10% and CapitaLand Development at 50%. Residential SPV will develop at its own cost the residential component of the site for sale, while CICT Sub-Trust will develop at its own cost and retain full ownership of the commercial component of the site.
The award of this tender marks a significant milestone for CICT as it reinforces its foothold in its core market of Singapore, while expanding its retail footprint into Singapore’s northeast region, the group notes. CICT adds that the project draws on CapitaLand Group’s established expertise in delivering large-scale integrated mixed-use developments, supported by CapitaLand Investment’s "best-in-class" commercial management capabilities that have consistently driven strong operational performance.
See also: Three adjoining Geylang plots for sale with guide price of $31 million
The acquisition and development of the site will be financed principally from bank borrowings and proportionate shareholders’ loans.
The consortium has paid or caused to be paid a tender deposit of about 5% of the tender price to HDB. A sum equivalent to 25% of the tender price will be paid within 28 days of the award of the tender, and the balance is payable within 90 days of the award of the tender.
Shares in UOL Group closed 9 cents higher or 0.935% up at $9.72 on Jan 14.
