Tuan Sing buys Sime Darby Centre for S$365 million
SINGAPORE — Tuan Sing Holdings has agreed to buy Sime Darby Centre in Bukit Timah for S$365 million in cash, the property developer said in a statement filed with the Singapore Exchange on Monday (April 10).
Tuan Sing intends to reposition the property into a hub of activities. Photo: Google Maps
SINGAPORE — Tuan Sing Holdings has agreed to buy Sime Darby Centre in Bukit Timah for S$365 million in cash, the property developer said in a statement filed with the Singapore Exchange on Monday (April 10).
Sime Darby Centre sits on part freehold and part 999-year leasehold commercial land of 140,886 sq ft with an allowable gross plot ratio of 1.8. This gives it a maximum permissible gross floor area of 253,595 sq ft, of which about 80 per cent is office space and the rest is retail. Currently, the property is about 96 per cent occupied over a net lettable area of about 202,712 sq ft.
Tuan Sing intends to reposition the property into a hub of activities, saying: “The company believes that there is a significant potential for commercial activities that can serve the needs of the vast residential community in the vicinity. Therefore, the company is confident that the asset shall be an excellent investment that will generate long term revenue and profit to the company.”
The deal, to be financed by both internal and external resources, is expected to be completed within ten weeks from April 7, when the purchase agreement was signed with Sime Darby Property (Dunearn), Tuan Sing said. Malaysian conglomerate Sime Darby currently owns 30 per cent of Sime Darby Centre while New York-based private equity giant Blackstone Group owns the other 70 per cent.
Tuan Sing shares rose 1.5 per cent on Monday to S$0.34 each, giving it a market capitalisation of S$396.3 million. The benchmark Straits Times Index ended up 0.1 per cent at 3,181.45.