MAYBANK Kim Eng's recent suggestion of setting up an airport real estate investment trust (Reit) to monetise the existing three Changi terminals so as to finance the construction of the fourth and fifth terminals is an interesting one.
To be absolutely sure however, analyst Chua Hak Bin was only suggesting the retail portion of Changi Airport's first three terminals be injected into an airport Reit.
According to his calculations, such a Reit, secured on just the rental income of retail tenants in the three terminals, would already command a market capitalisation of nearly S$10 billion.
He does not think it probable that the government would "Reit" the entire airport, including the runways and other...