Yong Tai plans maiden township development

PETALING JAYA: Garment maker-turned-property developer, Yong Tai Bhd, is looking to take another step further towards its ambition to become a major property player with plans to embark on its maiden township development in the near future.
Its recently appointed CEO Boo Kuang Loon said the company is firmly focused on developing its flagship residential development and has zeroed in on the prime Klang Valley area.
He said the developer is busy scouting for suitable landbank in the Klang Valley, or its outskirts, to develop the township.
"We are identifying land in the Klang Valley which we (can develop into) certain landed township development. We do have a few parcels of land in our radar, so we are looking at that but nothing concrete as yet," Boo told SunBiz recently.
Acknowledging that there is a scarcity of undeveloped land bank in the Klang Valley, he pointed out that there is potential tracts in areas such as Ijok, Putrajaya, Dengkil or even further south in Nilai, Negri Sembilan.
In terms of scale, Boo said a "good size" for the company will be between 150 to 200 acres.
Yong Tai is banking on the Klang Valley's ever expanding population growth and access to highways for demand for landed properties. He noted that the population boom will ensure there is always demand although it is located some distance away from the city.
Boo is eager to launch the township project soon and is looking towards Yong Tai completing its corporate exercise which involves the issuance of new shares (special issue) and irredeemable convertible preference shares (ICPS) as well as a private placement of shares in the second half of this year.
"We hope to do it (township development) soon. I expect the special issue to be completed by July," he said.
Yong Tai expects to raise gross proceeds of RM336 million from the corporate exercise based on an indicative issue price of 80 sens apiece.
Yong Tai will allocate about RM160 million of the proceeds to part-finance its future projects including acquisitions of new land banks.
Established in 1971, Yong Tai was a garment manufacturer whose businesses include the manufacturing and dyeing of fabrics, as well as trading and retailing of textile and garment products and related fashion accessories.
However, due to challenging operating environment the group decided to embark on its diversification plan into property development in 2014.
Its maiden project was a joint venture with Melaka-based PTS Properties SB to build a 29-storey luxury condominium hotel known as The Pines, which was fully sold.
It is developing its second project with PTS Properties, The Apple, also in Malacca. It includes a 16-storey four-star hotel managed by The Courtyard by Marriott and a 32-storey service apartment with a total gross development value (GDV) of RM234 million.
Yong Tai is also expected to make its first entry entry into the Klang Valley this year with a RM140 million GDV mixed development project in Puchong.