EC World Reit secures renewal for one of two leases from China Tobacco

PART of EC World Real Estate Investment Trust’s ( EC World Reit ) Hengde Logistics warehouse property in Hangzhou will remain occupied by its existing tenant, China Tobacco.

On Tuesday (Dec 19), the manager said China Tobacco selected the 74,057 square metres (sq m) of space in the property, through a tender process, as its warehouse for the storage of raw materials.

Terms of the tender entail a new lease period from Jan 1, 2024 to Dec 31, 2025.

China Tobacco’s earlier leasing agreement for the same space was from May 9, 2021 to Dec 31, 2023.

The new rental rate will be on a par with what China Tobacco is currently paying for the space.

In October, EC World Reit’s manager announced that China Tobacco would not be renewing its lease for a separate space in Hengde Logistics spanning 159,752 sq m – marking the loss of a major lease contract for the Reit.

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The tenant’s lease for this portion of the property also expires on Dec 31, 2023, and has been active since Oct 5, 2020.

At the time, the manager said it would conduct a review of the space, including exploring a new leasing strategy. 

Units of EC World Reit have been suspended from trading on the Singapore Exchange since Aug 31, following its manager’s disclosure that the Reit and its subsidiaries could not fully repay their offshore interest expenses due.