SINGAPORE Law and Practice Contributed by: Dorothy Marie Ng, Monica Yip, Tay Peng Cheng and Tan Shao Tong, WongPartnership LLP
1.3 Proposals for Reform The Lease Agreements for Retail Premises Act 2023 (LARPA) came into effect on 1 February 2024, making it mandatory for all landlords and tenants of retail leases in Singapore to comply with the Code of Conduct for Leasing of Retail Premises. Besides setting out guidelines on what constitutes fair practice in relation to ten - ancy agreements of qualifying retail premises, the Code of Conduct also includes a checklist template to accompany retail tenancy agree - ments and a step-by-step guide to file devia - tions. Additionally, the LARPA also sets out a dispute resolution framework for parties to file complaints regarding non-compliance, and provides for the appointment of members of the Fair Tenancy Industry Committee and its specific functions, including the reviewing and updating of the Code of Conduct as well as the monitor - ing and promotion of compliance by landlords and tenants. The Building Control (Amendment) Bill was passed on 10 September 2024 and is expected to come into force in the third quarter of 2025. The Bill will introduce a new Mandatory Energy Improvement (MEI) regime requiring owners of energy-intensive buildings with a minimum gross floor area of 5,000 square metres to appoint qualified persons to carry out an energy audit and develop an Energy Efficiency Improvement Plan to reduce energy use intensity by at least 10% from levels as at the energy audit. While previously, only new buildings, buildings under - going major retrofitting works and major energy use changes were subject to energy perfor - mance requirements, the new MEI regime will apply to existing buildings which are designated as energy-intensive.
industrial acquisitions and divestments taking place in 2024. Additionally, growing interest in adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) processes has led to a surge of interest in development of high-performance data centres to cater to the increased capacity which such AI processes will require. In 2024, some of the notable transactions were: • the acquisition by CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust of a 50% interest in ION Orchard from its sponsor CapitaLand Invest - ment Limited for SGD1,848.5 million in Sep - tember 2024; • the acquisition in August 2024 by a joint ven - ture platform jointly established by Warburg Pincus LLC and Lendlease Corporation of a SGD1.6 billion portfolio of Singapore indus - trial assets from entities associated with Blackstone and Mr Lim Chap Huat, Executive Chairman of Soilbuild Group Holdings Ltd; • the acquisition by Brunei Investment Agency of a 49% stake in Elementum, a life sciences complex, from Ho Bee Land for SGD272 mil - lion in August 2024; • the acquisition by ALOG Trust, a sub-trust of ESR-REIT, and a fund managed by ESR Group, of a company which owns a high- specification manufacturing facility and new Green Mark Platinum certified ramp-up logis - tics warehouses for approximately SGD840 million in November 2024; • the SGD1.38 billion divestment of two AI- ready hyperscale data centres by a Keppel JV to Keppel DC REIT in November 2024; and • the acquisition by a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hotel Properties Limited of a three-storey retail podium and 407-room hotel known as Concorde Hotel and Shopping Mall (situ - ated in Singapore’s prime retail belt, Orchard Road) for SGD821 million in November 2024.
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