Occupancy Level Of JTC Ready Built Facilities Hits New High

Source : The Business Times, August 7, 2008

Business park segment contributed to 51% of total RBF net allocation in Q2

THE net allocation for JTC ready-built facilities (RBF) in Q2 2008 reached 84,100 sq m, 2.2 times higher than the 38,300 sq m in the previous quarter.

This boosted the occupancy level by one percentage point to a new JTC record level of 94.9 per cent.

JTC said the performance was supported by a strong gross allocation of 159,100 sq m, the highest level since 2004.

Of the total RBF net allocation, 50.8 per cent was contributed by the business park segment. Gross allocation increased from 5,800 sq m in Q1 '08 to 45,400 sq m in Q2 '08 due to the newly available business park space at Fusionpolis, which accounted for 93 per cent (42,116 sq m) of the gross allocation for business park space in Q2 '08.

For the business park segment, related and supporting services industries contributed to a gross allocation of 44,200 sq m.

As a result of new supply coming on-stream at Fusionpolis, the occupancy level for business park space declined marginally by 0.4 per cent from the last quarter to 94.3 per cent.

Termination at 2,700 sq m remained largely unchanged in Q2 '08.

Stack-up factory space contributed 31 per cent to RBF net allocation. However, termination level increased to 75,000 sq m in Q2 '08, higher than the 51,200 sq m in Q1 '08.

The demand for flatted factory space fell by 1 per cent quarter-on-quarter (qoq) to 1.22 million sq m in Q2 '08, with corresponding supply remaining unchanged at 1.399 million sq m.

JTC said that negative net allocation for flatted factory space in Q2 '08 of 6,900 sq m marked the first negative quarter since Q2 '07.

This was driven by a 15 per cent lower (qoq) gross allocation to 53,400 sq m and a 62 per cent higher (qoq) termination to 60,300 sq m in the quarter.

According to JTC's report, the electronics sector accounted for the highest termination of flatted factory space at 33,100 sq m in Q2' 08, up from 5,000 sq m in the previous quarter.

The net allocation of JTC prepared industrial land (PIL) fell to 34 ha in Q2' 08 from 114.9 ha in the previous quarter.

Gross allocation of 64.1 ha in the quarter was lower compared with 120.4 ha registered in the previous quarter.

PIL also saw a higher termination level of 30.1 ha in Q2' 08 compared with 5.5 ha in Q1' 08.

The manufacturing sector accounted for 54 per cent of the Q2' 08 total PIL allocation. Within the manufacturing sector, the biomedical manufacturing segment was the highest taker of PIL at 57 per cent.

The net allocation for the JTC generic land segment dropped to 26.7 ha in Q2 '08 from 81.8 ha in Q1 '08, a fall of 67 per cent.

The net allocation for JTC specialised parks declined to 7.3 ha in the quarter, an 80 per cent drop from 33.1 ha in the preceding quarter.