One Asia invites bids for PTC assets

One Asia Property Consultants (Pg) Sdn Bhd placed advertisements at the end of June inviting bids for the land and assets of the 160-year-old Penang Turf Club (PTC), the club's exclusive marketing agent for the disposal¹. The closing date for the submission of tenders is Nov 29, 2024¹.

The PTC land and seven other plots owned by the club add up to 203.4 acres and hold recreational or residential titles, and may fetch an estimated RM2.6 billion¹. The two largest parcels are the flat PTC land with a recreational title measuring 118.14 acres (5.15 million sq ft) and a hillside parcel measuring 73.32 acres (3.19 million sq ft), currently a durian plantation¹. Six other components offer a combined 11.04 acres, and one other asset is a bungalow on Penang Hill (41,469 sq ft)¹. Three trustees hold the assets: 91-year-old Goh Eng Toon, 85-year-old Teh Choon Beng and 78-year-old Ong Eng Khuan¹.

Bidders must make an offer for all eight components individually, though the vendor retains the right to sell any of the smaller components before Nov 29, and the successful bidder of the turf club track will have to buy whatever remains unsold after that date¹. One Asia chief operating officer Lim Ewe Tatt said the response had been overwhelming, with interest from Bursa Malaysia-listed developers and queries from China/Hong Kong, Singapore and Indonesia¹.

The PTC members approved the sale at an extraordinary general meeting on June 10¹. Should the assets sell for RM2.6 billion and the amount be divided equally among the PTC's 600 members, each member could get roughly RM4 million¹. An industry source puts the price of the turf club land at RM400 psf, meaning the 118.14 acres could be worth RM2.06 billion, while the value of the remaining components is estimated at RM600 million¹. Because the turf club land is classified as recreational, the buyer would need to convert the land use, and recent reports say the conversion to commercial status could cost an additional RM1 billion¹.

This is not the first attempt to sell the land. Abad Naluri Sdn Bhd, in which Equine Capital Bhd had a 25% stake, was said to have signed a deal with the PTC in 2004 to buy the land for RM488 million, but the deal fell through in 2008 following strong public opposition as well as a dispute between the turf club and Abad Naluri¹. In 2010 the PTC called for bids for a 57.3-acre parcel along Persiaran Jesselton Selatan, won a year later by Berjaya Land Bhd, which bought the parcel for RM459 million, or RM184 psf¹.

What it means for players

The PTC is a racing club, and the sale covers its land and property assets rather than any gambling license or betting operation. The reports do not say what happens to racing or betting at the club after the handover, or whether any wagering activity continues at the site. Asked if the state has any restrictions on foreigners buying land in Penang, Lim said there is none, though buyers would need the approval of the Foreign Investment Committee¹. For anyone who bets on Malaysian racing, no change to betting rules, licensing or the availability of markets is described in the reports. Details of how the sale affects the club's members' racing or betting arrangements have not been reported.

What happens next

Tenders close on Nov 29, 2024¹. One Asia says it will take two months to select the successful bidder after the closing date, and the PTC will hand over the club to the buyer by 2025¹. The purchaser will be responsible for obtaining all necessary approvals, including approval for the conversion of land use, and must show proof of funds, with an investment banker hired to vet submissions¹.