Felicia Tan Fri, Jun 10, 2022
The manager of Mapletree Industrial Trust (MINT) says it has divested its data centre at 19675 West Ten Mile Road, Southfield, Michigan for US$10.0 million ($13.8 million).
On June 10, the manager announced that the REIT trustee had entered into a sale and purchase agreement with an unnamed third-party purchaser for the proposed divestment.
The proposed divestment was completed on June 9, US eastern standard time.
The property is a four-storey data centre with a net lettable area (NLA) of about 52,940 sq ft. Part of the Northwestern Office Center office park, the property is sited on freehold land with a land area of about 121,122 sq ft.
The property was acquired through a 40:60 joint venture with the REIT’s sponsor, Mapletree Investments on Dec 20, 2017. The REIT had subsequently acquired the remaining 60% interest of the joint venture on Sept 1, 2020.
The property, which has an occupancy rate of 74.3%, unchanged since its acquisition, contributed about 0.3% to MINT’s portfolio gross revenue in the FY2022 ended March.
According to the manager, it had assessed that it would be difficult to lease out the remaining space in the near term. After evaluating all viable options and taking into account the property’s small land plot, divesting the property was found to be in the best interest of unitholders.
The existing tenant was selected as the successful bidder with the highest bid following a request for proposal process conducted in November 2021.
The net proceeds from the divestment will be deployed to fund working capital requirements and/or reduce existing debt.
“The proposed divestment signifies our proactive efforts in the rejuvenation and rebalancing of MINT’s portfolio in the United States to improve portfolio quality,” says Tham Kuo Wei, CEO of the manager.
Following the divestment, MINT now owns 141 properties, which comprises 85 properties in Singapore and 56 properties in North America.
As at 9.05am, units in MINT are trading 4 cents lower or 1.58% down at $2.49.