CapitaLand applies to list RM2bil REIT

KUALA LUMPUR: Singapore-based CapitaLand Ltd has submitted its application to list its RM2bil real estate investment trust (REIT) on Bursa Malaysia.

However, the timing of the listing would depend on market conditions, said chief investment officer Kee Teck Koon.

From left: CapitaLand Commercial Ltd CEO Wen Khai Meng, Quill Group of Companies, executive director Dato' Michael Ong, MD Dato' Jennifer Low and CapitaLand Ltd, CIO Kee Teck Koon laying cement to the top of Tower D at KL Sentral on Wednesday. - Starpic by Victor K.K. Ng

“We have just submitted the application and expect to obtain the approval by the fourth quarter of this year,” he told reporters after the topping-up ceremony of Tower D in Lot J, KL Sentral, yesterday.

Tower D is being developed by Quill Realty Sdn Bhd, which is 60% owned by Quill and 40% owned by Malaysia Commercial Development Fund (MCDF). MCDF is managed by MCDF Management Pte Ltd, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of CapitaLand, with Aseambankers Malaysia Bhd as principal adviser.

Kee said the company hoped to list the REIT before year-end but it would hinge on the performance of the local capital market.

On the possibility of listing its REIT in other countries due to the lacklustre Malaysian market, Kee said the company was very clear on wanting to list it in Malaysia.

Assets to be injected into the trust will include Gurney Plaza in Penang, Mines Shopping Fair in Seri Kembangan, and Sungai Wang Plaza in Kuala Lumpur.

Kee said the company was always on the lookout for high-value commercial properties in Kuala Lumpur but there was currently nothing concrete.

Quill Capita Trust chief executive officer Chan Say Yeong said the demand for commercial properties was encouraging due to the limited supply of commercial assets in Kuala Lumpur.

“Generally the demand comes from oil and gas, telecommunications and multinational companies as well as the service sector.

“The rental growth rates in the Kuala Lumpur City Centre and KL Sentral areas were between 15% and 20% for the past few years,” he added.

Quill Group of Companies executive director Datuk Michael Ong said Tower D - a 29-storey office tower with a six-storey podium - would be ready for occupancy in March. Of its total net lettable space of 355,323 sq ft, 65% has been taken up by tenants so far.

Ong said the average monthly rental in KL Sentral was between RM6 and RM7 per sq ft while the latest property transaction price in KL Sentral was RM1,000 per sq ft.

By The Star