Singapore developer lands right to buy stake in London office tower

The Singapore-listed firm has entered a call-option agreement to acquire the stake in Aviva Tower in the financial district, based on a property value of ฃ330 million (Bt14.83 billion), or 2.2 per cent above the current market valuation.
Aviva Tower is a 28-storey office tower at 1 Undershaft that received approval from the London planning authorities to be redeveloped into the tallest building in the City of London, at 304.94 metres.
The redevelopment will also triple the tower’s existing gross floor area and net lettable area to 154,100 square metres and 92,975 square metres, respectively.
The tower’s current market value of ฃ323 million has not factored in any potential redevelopment value.
The call option is structured as a right to acquire a 20-per-cent stake in Aroland Holdings, which owns Aviva Tower.
Perennial paid US$4 (Bt142) to enter into the option, comprising $1 to each of the existing shareholders of Aroland.
Should Aroland decide to proceed with the redevelopment, Perennial has the right, but not the obligation, to exercise the call option.
Perennial would then manage the redevelopment once Aroland confirms the execution plans. The option expires on July 31, 2019.
Aroland is held by HPRY Holdings, Burlingham International and two other investors. 
HPRY is owned by Perennial chairman Kuok Khoon Hong, one of the largest sponsors of Perennial, while Burlingham is owned by Wilmar International executive deputy chairman Martua Sitorus and his family.
Under the redevelopment plans, the new tower will host Britain’s highest publicly accessible viewing gallery on the top two floors, curated by the Museum of London, with London’s highest public restaurant below.
The total development cost is expected to be more than ฃ1 billion.
The new skyscraper is expected to provide 130,000 square metres of office space, enough to accommodate 10,000 workers.
The design is by Eric Parry Architects, a London-based studio that has worked on several high-profile projects, including the modernisation of the historic St-Martin-in-the-Fields church just off Trafalgar Square in central London.
The developer is Singapore-based Aroland Holdings Limited, which said in a statement it was developing tall buildings in capital cities around the world.
A public-relations spokeswoman said 1 Undershaft was Aroland’s first project in London.
Nicknamed the Trellis due to its external metal bracing, the new building will be part of a cluster of towers that also includes the distinctive Gherkin and more recent additions like the Leadenhall Building, known as the Cheese-Grater.
There are more than 430 buildings of 20 storeys or more in the pipeline in London, according to a survey earlier this year by New London Architecture, an independent organisation.
Critics say the city’s skyline is becoming increasingly cluttered by generic glass-and-metal towers that have little architectural interest and dwarf historic landmarks such as the dome of St Paul’s Cathedral.
Some projects have faced fierce opposition from residents and groups such as the Skyline Campaign, which is supported by architects, historians, engineers and others who feel London’s character and heritage is under threat from skyscrapers.