A 4.5-year $429 million green loan, provided by loan advisor DBS Bank, will be used to finance the development at Northumberland Road. Photo: CDL
City Developments Limited (CDL) and MCL Land have secured green loans amounting to $847 million, which will be used to finance the development of two Government Land Sales (GLS) sites at Northumberland Road and Tengah Garden Walk.
A 4.5-year $429 million green loan, provided by loan advisor DBS Bank, will be used to finance the development at Northumberland Road, while a 4.5-year $418 million green loan, provided by loan advisor UOB, will be used to fund the executive condominium (EC) project at Tengah Garden Walk.
CDL and MCL Land will develop the two projects under a 50:50 joint venture.
“Both facilities are some of the largest green loans in real estate referencing the Singapore Overnight Rate Average (SORA) to date and also mark both developers’ first SORA-based green loans,” said CDL and MCL Land in a joint release.
The two projects are expected to secure the Building and Construction Authority’s (BCA) Green Mark GoldPLUS certifications, which will eventually classify the projects as “Eligible Green Projects aligned with Green Loan principles issued by the Loan Market Association and Asia Pacific Loan Market Association”.
The 94,000 sq ft site at Northumberland Road will be developed into a mixed-used development project, comprising 407 residential units and commercial retail space on the ground floor. Green features at the development include energy-efficient fittings like LED lighting and five-ticks air conditioning systems as well as a pneumatic waste conveyance system.
The 237,032 sq ft site at Tengah Garden Walk, on the other hand, will be developed into a 628-unit EC project, with green features including “solar photovoltaic systems to replace 30% of energy consumption generated from the common areas and a passive facade design that encourages healthier ventilation and a reduction in overall heat gain”.
Sherman Kwek, Group Chief Executive Officer of CDL, said the company has demonstrated that green financing provides an “alternative financing avenue that plays a pivotal role in channelling capital towards building smarter, greener and more climate-friendly infrastructure”.
In fact, CDL has secured over $3 billion in sustainable financing to date, which include green loans, a sustainability-linked loan and a green bond.
“We look forward to leveraging on our expertise in sustainability and working closely with our JV partner, MCL Land, to explore innovative green building technologies and solutions for our joint projects and minimising our impact on the environment,” he said.
Tan Wee Hsien, Chief Executive Officer of MCL Land, said the green loans are part of the company’s journey to forging a more sustainable future for its developments and customers.
“We are keeping pace with our parent company, Hongkong Land, whose commitment to sustainability remains a key component of its efforts to empower the communities of today to aspire for a better tomorrow. To date, Hongkong Land has secured sustainability-linked loans of US$1.9 billion in the region and recently issued its US$500 million inaugural green bond and a HK$375 million green bond,” he said.
“As we aspire to be a green developer advocate, we look forward to working collaboratively with our JV partner CDL towards a low-carbon future with our upcoming projects,” he added.
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Victor Kang, Digital Content Specialist at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact him about this story, email: victorkang@propertyguru.com.sg
