See Hup Seng

See Hup Seng: to lift halt at 3pm.

Proposes to take 30% stake in a JV with Ho Lee Group, Evia Real Estate Mgt, and CNH Invmt, in a Serangoon Executive Condo project, for consideration of $1.5m. See Hup Seng will also provide a sh/h loan of $15m to the JV.
Previously, Ho Lee and Evia won the HDB 99-yr tender for the 133k sf land parcel at upper Serangoon View/ Upper Serangoon Road. The site is expected to yield a gfa of 466.9m sm or ~450 residential units.
Ho Lee will be the main contractor, will Evia will be the project mgr. See Hup Seng is new to the property business, and will use this venture to broaden its knowledge base
The proposed JV is subject to approval of See Hup Seng sh/h in an EGM.

See Hup Seng is better known as a provider of corrosion prevention services to the marine, oil and gas and construction industries in Spore. Via its wholly owned TAT Petroleum, it is also a distributor and supply chain mgr for refined petroleum pdts in Asia Pac.

While See Hup Seng says the property JV can potentially bring additional income and cash flow to the Group, the diversification of See Hup Seng into a new area of property developer may not sit well with value investors, who normally view such invmts as a distraction to the core business.