PETALING JAYA (June 6): The planned listing of WCT Holdings Bhd's real estate investment trust (REIT) may be deferred to 2019 pending the outcome of a legal dispute between WCT's indirect wholly-owned subsidiary Gemilang Waras Sdn Bhd and Aeon Co (M) Bhd.

WCT's REIT listing was originally slated to take place at the end of 2017.

"The plans [to list the REIT] are still ongoing but we have deferred it pending the Aeon case. It (listing) will not happen this year (2018), hopefully next year (2019)," WCT director of corporate strategy Ng Chee Kiet told reporters here today after WCT's annual general meeting.

The Gemilang Waras-Aeon legal dispute started in November 2017. According to WCT's statements to Bursa Malaysia, Gemilang Waras had on Nov 9, 2017 received cause papers which showed that Aeon had commenced a suit against Gemilang Waras in the High Court of Malaya in Kuala Lumpur.

WCT said the suit was in relation to the renewal of lease for Aeon Mall Bukit Tinggi.

WCT said Aeon was seeking, among others, an injunction to prevent Gemilang Waras from taking any action to terminate the lease agreement dated Nov 23, 2007 pending court's decision.

On May 2, 2018, WCT said the Kuala Lumpur High Court had delivered its judgement on April 27, 2018 in favour of Gemilang Waras. WCT said the court ruled, among others, that there was no renewal of the lease and the lease had expired on Nov 23, 2017.