SC Asset earmarks Bt12 billion for land purchases, new projects

More than 70 per cent of the budget will come from the company’s cash flow and borrowings from commercial banks, while about Bt4 billion will be funded by a new debenture. 

This will enable SC Asset to manage its financial costs at 5-5.2 per cent this year, lower than the average of 5.5 per cent last year, chief financial officer Attapol Sariddipuntawat told a news conference yesterday. 

Some Bt8 billion of the investment budget will be spent on developing and constructing the infrastructure for both existing and new projects launched this year, with the remainder earmarked for buying land for the development of residential projects next year, he said.

Nine of the 13 new projects to be launched in the course of this year will be for low-rise detached housing and townhouses, the other four being condominium projects. For the former, Bt12 billion has been set aside, and Bt8 billion for the latter.

One of the condo projects, under the company’s new Chambers brand, will be on Ratchada-Ram Indra Road. 

Two of the 13 projects will be in the provinces: a detached-housing project in Hua Hin, and a condominium in Pattaya, said chief operating officer Kree Dejchai. 

“The launch of 13 projects this year will boost our number of residential projects for development to 37, worth nearly Bt40 billion combined. This will cover the development of housing projects through 2015,” he said.

Deputy chief executive officer Nattapong Kunakornwong said that because of this year’s aggressive investment programme, the company now targeted 2013 revenue coming in at Bt10 billion, and presales of Bt15 billion – up 20 per cent from last year’s level. 

“Starting with revenue of Bt10 billion this year, we target average annual revenue growth of 15 per cent through to 2015. It is our strategy to show sustainable growth every year,” he added. 

The company’s business strategy is to develop premium residential projects with prices ranging between Bt5 million and around Bt10 million per unit. 

 

FOREIGN BUYERS IN FOCUS

Promotion of the company’s products will focus on both domestic demand and foreign buyers expanding their investment in Asean and using Thailand as their regional head office in light of the Asean Economic Community’s coming into effect in 2015.

“We will roadshow our business and products in the region by focusing on foreign buyers expanding their regional investment,” said the deputy CEO.

Meanwhile, SC Asset is also studying the development of a new office building on Phaholyothin Road. This would have 20,000 square metres of space, half of which would be for rental purposes to serve expected strong demand for office space come 2015.

“We may invest in a building either this year or next, at a cost of Bt800 million,” Nattapong said. 

The company has three office buildings – Shinawatra 1, Shinawatra 2 and Shinawatra 3 – with a combined rental space of 100,000sqm.

The first two have an occupancy rate of 100 per cent, while Shinawatra 3 is 85 per cent occupied. The company’s income from office buildings averages Bt800 million a year.