No reason for alarm over credit: Ascendas

Source : Business Times - 30 Oct 2008

Industrial space provider spent over $1m on energy audit

THERE are no alarm bells ringing for Ascendas despite the credit crunch, says chief executive Chong Siak Ching.

‘We’ve always operated on a very conservative gearing, so we don’t see any reason to be alarmed,’ she told BT yesterday on the sidelines of the Ascendas green month launch.

‘What we are facing is what everyone else is facing in terms of the credit situation. I think all the various countries and economies are looking at how best to deal with the situation. I don’t think we are in any different position.’

Ascendas runs the Ascendas Real Estate Investment Trust (A-Reit) and its India Trust (a-iTrust). A-Reit’s gearing is 41.4 per cent and business trust a-iTrust’s is 5 per cent.

A-Reit said at its results briefing this month that it has fixed-rate hedging for 76.7 per cent of its debt for the next 3.93 years at a weighted average cost of 3.25 per cent.

Ms Chong declined to comment on the outlook for industrial space, saying that it is too early to tell how the market will unfold. ‘We will continue with our plans across Asia,’ she said. ‘We would expect every country to be hit. We are just watching to see how best to react.’

Ascendas spent more than $1 million over the past two years on an energy audit to help check and upgrade systems such as pumping and cooling. It said yesterday that it has saved $500,000 a year by introducing energy-saving measures.

Ascendas is open to the concept of green leases that include utility usage, Ms Chong said. ‘We also see a trend where customers are asking and looking for green features within the building before they decide on their location.’

The company is also funding a research project by Singapore Polytechnic to build solar kiosks. The kiosks - which each cost about $15,000 to build - can charge about four laptops for two to four hours of use. Ascendas will look at installing the kiosks at its industrial units after prototypes are up early next year, Ms Chong said.