DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 23rd, 24th and 25th Jun 2018

Singapore Real Estate

Selegie Centre, Peace Centre trying for en bloc sale again
The rejuvenation of Selegie Road will move further along if the owners of two buildings there succeed in their collective sale bids. Selegie Centre, a 10-storey freehold commercial building, has obtained approval from around 90 per cent of owners by share value and strata area to launch a tender with a reserve price of S$120 million.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/selegie-centre-peace-centre-trying-for-en-bloc-sale-again
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/selegie-centre-and-peace-centre-eye-collective-sales

JLL, Lendlease launch proptech accelerator in Singapore
Global real estate giants JLL and Lendlease are partnering to launch an accelerator in Singapore to kickstart innovation in real estate, an industry said to have been slow to tech advancements. But unless both companies commit to a substantial investment and a long-term plan to “transform legacy businesses”, the accelerator will yield limited benefits, observers said.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/startups/jll-lendlease-launch-proptech-accelerator-in-singapore

HDB closer to solar power target after awarding latest tender
Solar panels are set to be installed in blocks of public flats managed by the West Coast and Choa Chu Kang town councils, in a move to reduce Singapore’s carbon emissions and, in turn, the effects of climate change. Work will begin in the current third quarter, said the Housing & Development Board (HDB) on Sunday when it announced that the tender for the job had been won by a consortium made up of Sembcorp Solar Singapore and Japan’s Kurihara Kogyo.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/energy-commodities/hdb-closer-to-solar-power-target-after-awarding-latest-tender
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/hdb-closer-to-solar-power-target-after-latest-tender
https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/848-hdb-blocks-government-sites-get-solar-panels-q2-2020-sembcorp-awarded-solar-leasing

Independent living for seniors – with help if needed
Seniors who need some care have few housing options in Singapore except nursing homes, but a group hopes to push for alternative senior housing facilities. The group of four healthcare professionals and academics is in the process of registering an association to lobby for the provision of what are called assisted living facilities (ALFs).
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/housing/independent-living-for-seniors-with-help-if-needed

Young entrepreneurs get hub to brainstorm ideas
A 4,000 sq ft youth co-working space was launched at *Scape in Orchard Link yesterday. Located on the fourth storey of youth hangout *Scape, next to Cineleisure shopping mall, the space will be able to accommodate some 120 young entrepreneurs who can use it to brainstorm new ideas, hold project meetings and network with collaborators.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/housing/young-entrepreneurs-get-hub-to-brainstorm-ideas

Companies’ Brief

ARA acquires full control of Reit manager and property manager of Cache Logistics Trust
ARA Asset Management (ARA), through its wholly owned unit ARA Cache (Holdings) Pte Ltd, has entered into a share purchase agreement (SPA) with CWT Pte Limited (CWT) to acquire all of CWT’s shares in the Reit manager of Cache Logistics Trust. It is also concurrently acquiring the property manager of Cache Logistics Trust through a separate entity.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/ara-acquires-full-control-of-reit-manager-and-property-manager-of-cache-logistics-trust
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/ara-acquires-full-control-of-cache-logistics-trusts-manager-property

Sembcorp clinches solar project from HDB and EDB
Sembcorp Industries Ltd’s (Sembcorp) wholly owned unit, Sembcorp Solar Singapore Pte Ltd (Sembcorp Solar), has won a 50-megawatt project from the Housing & Development Board (HDB) and the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB). As the winning bidder for the project, Sembcorp will build, own, operate and maintain grid-tied rooftop solar systems with a total capacity of 50 megawatt across 848 HDB blocks under the West Coast and Choa Chu Kang Town Councils and 27 other government sites in Singapore.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/sembcorp-clinches-solar-project-from-hdb-and-edb
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/sembcorp-solar-project-win-from-hdb-edb-makes-it-major-player-in-singapor
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/sembcorp-wins-mega-tender-to-build-solar-panels-on-848-hdb-10464138

Another slam dunk as CDL chief takes to water for charity
City Developments Limited (CDL) group chief executive Sherman Kwek (left) made a splash for a good cause at the dunking machine during the Assisi Fun Day yesterday. His effort alone raised $183,846 from CDL’s business partners and visitors to the carnival, with the funds going towards supporting Assisi Hospice’s patients who need palliative care and their families.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/another-slam-dunk-as-cdl-chief-takes-to-water-for-charity

Keppel Corp commences buybacks after new mandate approved in April
For the 2018 year through to June 21, the Straits Times Index (STI) generated a 1.3 per cent decline in total return, compared to the Nikkei 225, Hang Seng and S&P/ASX 200 Indices averaging a 2.1 per cent gain in total return, while the Dow Jones has gained 1.7 per cent, in SGD terms. For the four trading sessions ended June 21, the STI generated a 1.7 per cent decline, with the three regional benchmarks averaging a 0.7 per cent gain.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/keppel-corp-commences-buybacks-after-new-mandate-approved-in-april

OUE Lippo Healthcare’s joint venture to operate hospital in Shanghai
OUE Lippo Healthcare’s subsidiary, China Merchants Lippo Hospital Management Shenzhen (CMLHM), has entered into a framework agreement with China Changjiang National Shipping Group Co and Shanghai Changjiang Shipping Co to incorporate a new joint venture company in China that will operate a hospital in Shanghai. The Shanghai Changhang Hospital, which is currently managed by Shanghai Changjiang Shipping Co, is located in the Pudong New District area of Shanghai.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/oue-lippo-healthcares-joint-venture-to-operate-hospital-in-shanghai

Debao Property Development applies for second extension to hold FY2017 AGM
Debao Property Development has submitted an application to the Singapore Exchange for a second extension to hold its annual general meeting (AGM) for the 2017 fiscal year. On Friday, the Chinese real estate developer said that it has requested for an extension of three months to Sep 30 this year, instead of June 30, to hold the AGM.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/debao-property-development-applies-for-second-extension-to-hold-fy2017-agm

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Flat eligible for sale after seller’s status updated to executor
We refer to Ms See Swee Tin’s letter (System problems blocking sale of flat; June 22). In order to register the intent to sell a Housing Board flat in the resale market, sellers must be flat owners or administrators/ executors of an HDB flat. The five-year minimum occupation period (MOP) must also be met.
https://www.straitstimes.com/forum/letters-in-print/flat-eligible-for-sale-after-sellers-status-updated-to-executor

Working smart
This week’s topic: How may work processes, buildings and office spaces need to be radically redesigned to reduce the use of resources? I am a supporter of flexible working and believe that, appropriately implemented, it can improve productivity and staff retention. However, working from home does not necessarily, other than in terms of space utilisation, reduce the demand for resources. It redistributes the demand.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/views-from-the-top/working-smart

Is that building ugly, or a vital part of Singapore’s heritage?
Many in the architecture and heritage communities believe the horseshoe-shaped Pearl Bank Apartments in Outram – which is at risk of demolition – is a beacon of modern Singaporean architecture and should be retained. But a new study indicates that members of the public do not share that sentiment.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/is-that-building-ugly-or-a-vital-part-of-heritage

HDB flats should not be used to make money
It may be timely to review the fundamental principle of public housing and make tweaks to it, such that it is solely for owner occupation (Tendering out plots with 60-year lease may be the way to go; June 17). Housing Board flats are heavily subsidised by taxpayers. For a start, the Government should review the policy of allowing owners of HDB flats to rent out the entire unit.
https://www.straitstimes.com/forum/letters-in-print/hdb-flats-should-not-be-used-to-make-money

WeWork. WeLive. WeGrow. We sure?
The office-space empire WeWork was founded eight years ago in New York. It currently leases 240,000 sq m of real estate in London alone, which reportedly makes it the city’s largest user of offices after the British government. The basic deal is simple enough: You can either pay to put your laptop wherever there is space, or stump up a little more for a more dependable desk or entire office – and, in either case, take advantage of the fact that, with operations in 20 countries, WeWork offers the chance to traverse the planet and temporarily set up shop in no end of locations.
https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/wework-welive-wegrow-we-sure

Possible speed bumps facing an upgraded KTM line
Singaporean Chua Jia Hwa, 33, takes the high-speed rail (HSR) in Taiwan once or twice a year, when he travels from Taipei to visit his relatives in Taichung. It gets him to Taichung in an hour – about half the travelling time compared to regular trains.
https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/possible-speed-bumps-facing-an-upgraded-ktm-line

Desert cities of the future
If Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is right, then a new way of living is set to emerge along a stretch of coastline between snow-capped mountains and beaches of the Red Sea. For the Prince, this sparsely populated area is “the blank page that you need to write humanity’s next chapter”.
https://www.straitstimes.com/world/middle-east/desert-cities-of-the-future-field-notes

Commentary: Direct interventions, not just social mixing, needed to narrow housing inequality
Singapore: In recent months, increasing social mixing in public housing estates has been suggested as a way to reduce social stratification and inequality in Singapore. This can be done, for instance, by integrating HDB rental and sold flats within individual blocks. Housing inequality mirrors wider economic inequality. Particular housing policies furthers the gap between the housing standards accessible to people with different economic capacities.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/housing-inequality-singapore-direct-intervention-social-mixing-10446264