(Nov 13): Palm oil billionaire Kuok Khoon Hong and a developer he controls are among owners seeking to unload a vacant site in Singapore meant for luxury mansions after facing setbacks in their building plans.
The sellers are seeking more than $350 million for the plot in the Caldecott Hill enclave, according to a statement Wednesday from Savills plc, which is open to offers from interested buyers until mid-January with another broker Delasa (S) Pte Ltd.
The site, spanning 752,014 square feet (17 acres), was bought in 2020 for $280.9 million. Corporate filings show that Perennial Holdings Pte Ltd holds a 40.2% stake in the land, with Kuok controlling 50% and the rest owned by Perpetual Capital VCC, an entity backed by a Southeast Asian sovereign wealth fund. Kuok and Wilmar International Ltd, the Singapore-based commodities giant he chairs, control nearly half of Perennial’s shares.
Perennial said in a statement that it’s looking to recalibrate its resources after pivoting to healthcare. It had previously planned to build so-called good class bungalows on the site, which formerly housed Singapore’s local broadcaster.
Although luxury mansions in Singapore are typically coveted and fetch high price tags, developing them from scratch often comes with significant hurdles. Authorities impose strict requirements on their development, including minimum sizes.
Perennial had sought to build a senior and assisted-living facility with a park on the site in 2024, but planning permission was refused by the Urban Redevelopment Authority, according to correspondence seen by Bloomberg News. Before that, an attempt by the site’s previous owner to build a 550-unit condominium in 2015 was rebuffed as well. Authorities have suggested they will only support the development of two-storey bungalows on the sprawling land.
Another plan for the senior facility was rejected again last month by the authority, which proposed developing bungalow plots with a minimum size of 800 square metres instead. Savills said the land could be redeveloped to accommodate more than 60 such houses. Perennial didn’t respond to an emailed query on the rejected plans.
Leasehold site
The area is a leasehold site that’s due to be returned to the state in 2093, unlike most mansions that are freehold and therefore more desired by the wealthy. Changing the land’s use for residential purposes and seeking to extend its lease would mean paying additional hefty levies to the authorities.
See also: Soon Hock Enterprise to dispose of property at 8 Kaki Bukit Avenue for $1.5 mil
Despite its Singapore base, Perennial is more heavily exposed to China, where nearly three-quarters of its assets were located in fiscal 2024. Perennial was privatised in 2020 in conjunction with major Chinese private equity firm Hopu Investment Management Co.
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