THE Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has awarded the tender for the residential site at West Coast Crescent to Cheung Kong Holdings-linked Billion Rise.

The company submitted the highest bid of $110.44 million - or $305 per sq ft per plot ratio - for the 99-year leasehold condominium site facing West Coast Park and overlooking the sea.

Billion Rise's bid was just 1.4 per cent higher than the next highest offer of $301 psf by Far East unit Tian Hock Properties. MCL Land was next with $103.5 million or $286 psf.

The tender, launched on Jan 23 and which closed on March 19, drew 12 bids from firms defying signs of a property slowdown. The bidders included major and mid-sized developers and contractors.

The West Coast Crescent site can be built up to about 36 storeys.

Some high-floor units would enjoy good views of the ocean and West Coast Park as surrounding buildings are mostly low- to medium-rise, he said.

This tender also reflects the current market situation as some bids came in

relatively low. Industry sources say a few developers were trying their luck with opportunistic bids.

The lowest bid of $50 million, from Teambuild Construction's Scantech Development, works out to just $138 psf.

Other bidders included Sim Lian Land ($236 psf), Hoi Hup Realty ($235 psf), Frasers Centrepoint ($210 psf) and Allgreen Properties ($186 psf). City Developments' Sunny Vista Developments and TID also put in a bid of $180 psf.

Consultants said the top bid of $305 psf will translate into an estimated break-even price of $680 psf to $720 psf for new condos. Units could be sold at between $750 and $800 psf.

Units at nearby Blue Horizon were sold at about $750 psf in the resale market in January and February, while sub-sales of units in Varsity Park and Clementi

Woods were done at $680 psf to $750 psf, according to CBRE Research.

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