A 99-year leasehold hotel site at Robertson Quay has attracted a total of nine bids in a public tender that closed yesterday.
“The tender for a 99-year leasehold hotel site at Robertson Quay closed today with nine bids received, reflecting the thriving tourism and hospitality sector,” said Li Hiaw Ho, Executive Director of CB Richard Ellis (CBRE) Research.
A joint bid between Novel Developments Ltd and New Vista Realty Ltd emerged as the top bidder for the site, offering S$127.76 million, or approximately S$938 psf ppr. This was more than twice the trigger price of S$51.50 million, said Mr. Li.
He added that the top bid was less than 1.0 percent higher than the second-highest bid of S$127.11 million, which was offered by RB Capital Robertson City Ltd.
“The highest bid of S$938 psf ppr for (the) subject site is some 15.4 percent higher than the S$813 psf ppr paid by RB Capital Hotels Ltd for the Clemenceau Avenue and Havelock Road site,” which it acquired in September 2010, noted Mr. Li.
Other bidders include Golden Development Private Ltd, Keck Seng International, Fragrance Assets, a tie-up bid between Tang Hotel Ltd and Tang Boulevard Ltd, Regal Land Ltd, Royal Group Holdings and Grand Plaza Park Hotel Ltd, which emerged as the lowest bidder at S$65 million.
The hotel site has a total area of 4,518.10 sq m with a maximum permissible gross floor area (GFA) of 12,651.00 sq m. It is located within Robertson Quay, along the historic Singapore River, amidst a well-established hotel cluster comprising developments like Park Hotel Clarke Quay, The Gallery Hotel and Studio M Hotel.
“The land parcel is well-located with entertainment hubs like Robertson Quay, Boat Quay and Clarke Quay nearby. The CBD, Orchard Road and the Marina Bay Sands IR are a short drive away,” said Mr. Li.
Meanwhile, Mr. Li noted that the “increasing number of tourists in Singapore has pushed up the demand for accommodation and thus land for hotels.”
“Some 11.64 million tourists came to Singapore in 2010, far exceeding the 9.68 million visitors noted in the previous year. Average occupation rate (AOR) and average room rate (ARR) also showed improvement in 2010 compared to 2009. The AOR for 2010 was 85.6 percent, some 9.8 percentage points higher the 75.8 percent recorded for 2009, while the ARR for 2010 was S$212.10, up from the S$189.10 registered in the previous year.”
The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) said it will still evaluate the tender result and a decision on the award will be announced at a later date.