Friday 29 Mar 2024
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This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on June 7, 2018

KUALA LUMPUR: The real estate investment trust (REIT) listing of WCT Holdings Bhd, expected to take place by end-2017, will not be happening this year either.

It is not the first time the REIT’s listing is deferred. Planned from as early as 2014, WCT — in which property tycoon Tan Sri Desmond Lim Siew Choon controls a 17.84% stake — postponed it to 2016, and then 2017. Now, it may take place next year.

WCT director of corporate strategy Ng Chee Kiet said the latest deferment is due to an ongoing court case between its indirect wholly-owned subsidiary Gemilang Waras Sdn Bhd and Aeon Co (M) Bhd.

“The plans [to list the REIT] are still ongoing but we have deferred it pending the Aeon case ... it will not happen this year, [but] hopefully [next year instead],” he told reporters after the group’s annual general meeting (AGM) yesterday.

On April 27, 2018, the High Court ruled in favour of WCT against Aeon in a case involving the lease renewal for Aeon Mall Bukit Tinggi. Aeon was asked to vacate the shopping centre, and pay Gemilang Waras damages calculated — from Nov 23, 2017 to the date of vacant possession of the lease property — as well as WCT’s legal cost.

However, Aeon intends to appeal against the decision, and will file for a stay of execution pending the appeal. “We are waiting for the court to fix the hearing dates,” said Chee Kiet.

Both parties have been locked in the court battle since November 2017, when WCT announced that Aeon had filed an injunction to prevent Gemilang Waras from terminating a lease agreement dated Nov 23, 2007, pending the court’s decision.

Separately, WCT announced on Monday it had withdrawn four resolutions that were to be tabled at its AGM yesterday — the granting of share options to its independent non-executive directors Tan Sri Marzuki Mohd Noor, Datuk Ab Wahab Khalil, Datuk Ng Sooi Lin and Ng Soon Lai@Ng Siek Chuan.

On this, Chee Kiet said it was institutional shareholders’ decision, supported by the board. “Basically, there are some institutional shareholders whose policy is not to support the granting of share options to non-executive directors, so it is part of their policy and we took note of that. Basically this is so that the independent directors can play their governance roles, and not be affected by share considerations,” Chee Kiet said. “The independent directors themselves asked to withdraw the resolutions.”

On prospects for 2018, Chee Kiet said WCT’s construction activities will continue being the group’s main earnings driver. “There will be no major shift in strategy; our existing [construction] order book of over RM5 billion should last us for two to three years.”

 

Two new projects worth over RM400m to be launched

The group also plans to launch two new property projects in 2018 — the Sapphire Paradigm Residences and the Paradigm Residences in Johor Baru, with a combined gross development value of over RM400 million. These projects are expected to contribute to the group’s property sales for 12 to 18 months.

“Total unbilled sales for our property development division is currently about RM180 million,” Chee Kiet said.

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