SINGAPORE (April 5): The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases at Westlite Toh Guan, a workers’ dormitory under Centurion Corp, has increased to by 10 to 28, said the government on April 5.
Westlite Toh Guan is one of the five workers dormitory that’s part of Centurion’s portfolio of workers’ accommodation in Singapore. The company runs similar facilities in Malaysia and students’ accommodations in UK.
The cluster at the Westlite Toh Guan dormitory, which has 6,800 residents, was first announced on March 31, when four of the newly confirmed cases that day was linked to a previous case.
The number increased incrementally over the next few days before the surge announced on Sunday.
Besides Westlite Toh Guan, another dormitory, S11 @ Punggol, which has 13,000 residents, saw a surge in number of confirmed cases by 22 to 62.
On Sunday, the government announced 120 new confirmed cases – the single largest one day increase since the Covid-19 outbreak.
Centurion had earlier announced it has won regulatory approval to redevelop Westlite Toh Guan facility from a workers’ dormitory and industrial training centre, into one that can be used for ancillary commercial purposes as well.
In addition, the existing lease of this property has been given a 25-year extension by the Urban Redevelopment Authority. Instead of expiring in September 2032, it will now last till November 2057. According to Knight Frank, the property is now valued at $284 million as at Dec 31, 2019, an increase of $70 million.
The company has now put the redevelopment plans on hold.
As of Dec 31, 2019, Centurion’s NAV was 70.43 cents, up from 60.34 cents as at Dec 31 2018.
On Feb 26, Centurion reported earnings of $103.8 million for the year ended Dec 31, 2019, up 23% from the preceding year. Revenue in the same period was up 11% to $133.4 million.
The bulk of the earnings were contributed by the revaluation gain of some $66.3 million booked by the company, which in, turn, was due to the extension of the lease.
Centurion shares closed last Friday at 38 cents, down 0.5 cent. Year to date, it has dropped 17.4%.
