The useful number in Carimin Petroleum Bhd's Sarawak purchase is about RM27 per sq ft, calculated on land area alone.
Carimin's 90%-owned Sri Borneo Energy Sdn Bhd is proposing to buy leasehold land and buildings in Sejingkat, Kuching, from Sarwaja Timur Sdn Bhd for RM21,120,000 cash, The Star reported, citing a Bursa Malaysia filing. The property measures 7.246ha, or roughly 779,954 sq ft, putting the headline consideration at about RM27.08 psf before assigning any separate value to the buildings and plant.
The site is not vacant land. The Star reported that it includes a three-storey administrative office, factory building, fabrication shops, a galvanising plant, storage and bundling yards and other facilities. The Edge Malaysia also reported the RM21.12 million consideration and said the proposed acquisition includes reactivating galvanising and metal fabrication activity at the former plant.
That distinction matters. A buyer paying RM27 psf for a bare industrial plot is reading the market one way. A buyer paying that on land area for a site with existing heavy industrial improvements is also buying time, permissions and usable infrastructure, subject to whether the title condition and state consent work out.
Carimin said the property carries a 60-year lease expiring in November 2049 and is currently subject to a title condition restricting use to a dockyard. Completion is conditional on Sri Borneo Energy obtaining written consent from the Sarawak minister responsible for land for the transfer.
The group expects to fund about 90% of the purchase through bank borrowings and 10% from internally generated funds. Its gearing is expected to rise to 0.21 times from 0.12 times, depending on the final funding mix. Completion is expected within 12 months, subject to the required consent.
Sources: The Star, The Edge Malaysia.
