GuocoLand obtains S$730m green loan for Tan Quee Lan project

Singapore

GUOCOLAND has obtained a S$730 million green club loan from OCBC Bank, DBS Bank and ICBC Singapore Branch for the construction of a new luxury residential cum commercial development at Tan Quee Lan Street.

Proceeds from the loan will go towards financing the project, including efforts in sustainable development, water and energy conservation, as well as adopting immersive urban greenery and landscaping.

The development is expected to meet the criteria to receive a Green Mark Gold Plus certification by the Building and Construction Authority (BCA).

The 30-storey development is a joint venture (JV) between GuocoLand and two Hong Leong Holdings subsidiaries - Intrepid Investments and Hong Realty. The JV had won the tender for the 124,116 square foot land plot in September 2019 with a bid of S$800.2 million.

Located above Bugis MRT interchange station, the development will have two residential towers with more than 500 units of luxury apartments, as well as a retail podium with food and beverage outlets open to the public.

GuocoLand's green loan framework has been structured according to green loan principles issued in 2018 by the Loan Market Association and Pacific Loan Market Association.

The framework was developed together with OCBC as sole green financing adviser and will provide guidance in the evaluation of the project's eligibility as a green project based on its sustainability objectives and management of the loan proceeds.

OCBC Bank, DBS Bank and ICBC Singapore Branch were the mandated lead arrangers for the loan. DBS and OCBC are the joint green coordinators.

Cheng Hsing Yao, GuocoLand Singapore group managing director, said the green loan is ICBC's first in the Republic.

"Climate change is one of the biggest challenges of our times. Our developments are always conceived, developed and managed with sustainability principles as the foundation," he said.

This year, the property developer's Guoco Midtown and Midtown Bay projects were awarded the BCA Green Mark Platinum award.

Elaine Lam, head, global corporate banking at OCBC, said green financing has really taken off in Singapore since late 2018 and a majority of the funds have been channelled into greening the property sector.

Chew Chong Lim, DBS managing director and global head of real estate, institutional banking group, added that the developer's first green loan is also the largest for a development project.

ICBC Singapore Branch deputy general manager Geng Hao said: "We have social and environmental commitments to provide financial support to GuocoLand and more companies in their green transformation and make new contributions to sustainable development in Singapore."

GuocoLand shares ended at S$1.40 on Tuesday, up S$0.02 or 1.5 per cent.