Mapletree Logistics Trust completes acquisition in Vietnam

THE manager of Mapletree Logistics Trust (MLT) has announced that MLT's trustee, HSBC Institutional Trust Services, has entered into a sale and purchase agreement with sponsor Mapletree Investments to acquire Mapletree Logistics Park Bac Ninh Phase 1 for 339.4 billion Vietnamese dong (S$21 million).

The acquisition, which was announced in May, was completed on Wednesday.

As the acquisition is considered an interested party transaction, the 3.4 billion-dong acquisition fee will be paid in MLT units to Mapletree Logistics Trust Management (MLTM).

"To ensure that the transaction is carried out at an arm's length basis, two independent valuations have been obtained of which one was commissioned independently by the trustee and the other commissioned by MLTM," MLT's manager said in a release to the Singapore Exchange.

The purchase price was below the valuations provided by the two valuers, DTZ Debenham Tie Leung (Vietnam) and CBRE Vietnam Co, of 345 billion dong and 350 billion dong respectively.

With the acquisition, MLT's portfolio has expanded to 118 properties - of which 52 properties are in Singapore - with a total book value of about S$4.66 billion.