SINGAPORE: Guocoland and the Hong Leong Investment Holdings group have won a bid to buy the Pacific Mansion condominium development in River Valley for S$980 million (RM2.91 billion), setting a new high among recent en bloc deal amounts.

The deal beats out the recent sales of Tampines Court, for S$970 million, and Amber Park, for S$907 million, for the largest en bloc transaction in the current cycle. It is surpassed only by the S$1.3 billion sale of Farrer Court more than a decade ago.

The winning bid represents a 4.5 per cent premium to the Pacific Mansion's reserve price of S$938 million.

Each owner of the development's 290 apartments will stand to receive a gross payout of S$3.26 million to S$3.48 million, while the owners of the two shop units there will pocket between S$2.2 million and S$4.5 million each, said marketing agent CBRE.

The freehold 128,352 square foot site has a plot ratio of 2.8 under the Urban Redevelopment Authority's 2014 Master Plan, but its maximum allowable gross floor area works out to 542,544 sq ft because its existing gross floor area is already 493,222 sq ft with a 10 per cent bonus balcony area.

Based on the maximum allowable gross floor area, the purchase price works out to S$1,806 per sq ft per plot ratio.

Mainboard-listed GuocoLand holds a 40 per cent stake in the bid. Hong Leong Investment Holdings' Hong Leong Holdings Ltd and Hong Realty hold the remaining 40 per cent and 20 per cent stakes respectively. 

Hong Leong Investment Holdings is also a substantial shareholder of Guocoland.

GuocoLand says the property, which lies within prime District 9, can be developed into a luxury condominium. It is within walking distance to Great World MRT station that is under construction and near to GuocoLand's Martin Modern project.- Straits Times