CapitaLand teams up with GIC to buy Shanghai's tallest twin towers for 12.8b yuan

Published Tue, Nov 13, 2018 · 12:16 AM

CAPITALAND, through an investment fund, is teaming up with GIC to acquire Shanghai's tallest twin towers for 12.8 billion yuan (about S$2.54 billion).

This property will become CapitaLand's third Raffles City integrated development in Shanghai, and also its ninth in China and 10th globally.

CapitaLand owns 41.7 per cent of Raffles City China Investment Partners III (RCCIP III), through which the real estate group has formed a 50:50 joint venture with GIC for the purpose of this acquisition.

The remaining interests in RCCIP III are held by investors from Asia, North America and the Middle East.

The Shanghai property is an integrated development that sits on a 4.05 hectare site along Huangpu River in North Bund. Excluding its car park, the property that is now under development has a total gross floor area (GFA) of 312,717 square metres. It comprises two 50-storey premium Grade A office towers linked at the base by a seven-storey shopping mall.

The development is linked directly to Line 12 and the upcoming Line 19, two major metro lines with the highest number of interchange stations in the city. Standing at 263 metres, the towers offer panoramic views of Shanghai Bund and Lujiazui CBD (Central Business District) on both sides of Huangpu River. The development has achieved structural completion and is expected to open in phases from the second half of 2019.

Shanghai is part of the five core city clusters under CapitaLand's China strategy, which comprises Beijing-Tianjin, Shanghai-Hangzhou-Suzhou-Ningbo, Guangzhou-Shenzhen, Chengdu-Chongqing-Xian, and Wuhan. Including this latest acquisition, CapitaLand now owns or manages 20 commercial properties in Shanghai with combined GFA of over 1.8 million square metres.

CapitaLand has divested close to S$2 billion worth of assets to date in China this year. It added that it will continue to optimise its China portfolio, with a view to enhance its readiness to seize growth opportunities.

Lee Chee Koon, president and group CEO, CapitaLand Group, said: "This acquisition gives CapitaLand a distinctive Raffles City in the fast-developing North Bund of Shanghai.

"This prime asset will begin operations in phases from the second half of 2019, giving us speed to market in the competitive Shanghai market... CapitaLand remains the foreign developer with the largest portfolio under management in Shanghai, a strong market with the depth to support our third Raffles City integrated development.

"In line with our long-term belief in China, we will stay invested through market cycles to reap the compounding effects on our investments."

Lucas Loh, president of China and investment management, CapitaLand Group, said: "The Raffles City in North Bund is the second asset to be injected into RCCIP III; marking another successful execution of the fund's mandate to invest in prime integrated developments in key gateway cities in China. We will continue to build on this traction to deliver robust returns to our investor partners and first-rate value to our customers."