Malaysia's Eco World Wins Record $208.1 Million Bid for Singapore's Bishan GLS Site

The Urban Redevelopment Authority has awarded a 46,103 sq ft residential plot on Sin Ming Avenue to Malaysian developer Eco World Development for $208.1 million, a land rate analysts say could push future new-launch prices in the area above $3,000 per square foot.

TL;DR

• URA awarded the Lorong Puntong/Sin Ming Avenue site in Bishan to Eco World Development (S) Pte Ltd for $208.1 million ($1,612 psf ppr) on 18 September 2026, beating six other bidders including a Hong Leong Holdings-TID joint venture.
• The bid is a new high for a purely residential Government Land Sales site in Singapore's Rest of Central Region, about 11% above the next-highest offer.
• It marks Malaysia-listed Eco World's first Singapore GLS win; the company says it plans to launch roughly 140 homes on the site under a new "VERSIONE" series in 2028.

What site did URA just award, and who won?

On 18 September 2026, Singapore's Urban Redevelopment Authority confirmed it had awarded a residential plot at Lorong Puntong/Sin Ming Avenue, in the Bishan planning area, to Eco World Development (S) Pte Ltd, the Singapore arm of Malaysia-listed developer Eco World Development Group Berhad. The winning bid was $208,099,000, which works out to $1,612 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr), a standard measure used to compare land prices across sites of different sizes and densities.

The 99-year leasehold site spans 4,283.4 sq m (46,103 sq ft) and carries a maximum permissible gross floor area of 11,994 sq m (about 129,093 sq ft), which URA estimates could yield roughly 140 homes. It was launched for tender on 25 June 2026 as part of the government's first-half 2026 Government Land Sales Confirmed List, and the tender closed on 15 September.

How does Eco World's bid compare with the rest?

Seven parties submitted bids, more than most analysts had expected going in. Eco World's offer beat the next-highest bid, from a joint venture linked to Hong Leong Holdings and TID, by 11.1%; that bid came in at $187.33 million, or $1,451 psf ppr. Behind that, Malaysian developer Sunway MCL bid $185.38 million ($1,436 psf ppr), EL Development bid $182.1 million ($1,410 psf ppr), and the remaining bids ranged down to about $162 million ($1,256 psf ppr) from Kheng Leong Company, the lowest of the seven.

Why does this land price matter for buyers and investors?

A land bid feeds directly into what a developer needs to charge once units go on sale, so a record psf ppr is a leading indicator, not a confirmed price. CBRE's head of research for Singapore and Southeast Asia, Tricia Song, said the $1,612 psf ppr bid sets a new benchmark for a purely residential government land sale site in the Rest of Central Region, surpassing the $1,515 psf ppr paid for a Berlayar Drive site in August 2026. Based on that land cost, Newmark's Wong Shanting and PropNex's Wong Siew Ying have both estimated the eventual project could launch above $3,000 psf, though neither is a confirmed selling price, and actual pricing will depend on construction costs and competing supply closer to 2028.

For context, the last GLS residential plot sold in the Bishan planning area was awarded in October 2014, at $731 psf ppr, and became the 288-unit Thomson Impressions. Existing 99-year leasehold resale projects nearby have traded this year between $1,485 and $2,170 psf, according to CBRE, while the only recent new launch close by, the freehold Artisan 8, has sold at an average of $2,388 psf since debuting in August 2025, a reminder that Singapore's broader housing market has been showing signs of stabilising (propertynewsasia.com/tag/mop-flats-2026/) even as pockets of city-fringe land command record rates.

Who is Eco World, and what comes next?

Eco World Development Group has marketed residential projects to Singapore buyers since 2015 through its Eco Botanic and Eco Spring townships in Johor, but this is its first purchase through Singapore's GLS programme. In a statement, the group's president and chief executive, Datuk Seri Chang Khim Wah, said the plot's proximity to Bright Hill MRT station on the Thomson-East Coast Line, and to schools including Ai Tong Primary, would help the project appeal to home upgraders and multigenerational families. The company says it intends to launch the project, under a new series called VERSIONE, in 2028.

Buyers eyeing the area will also be watching the 1,268-unit Thomson Reserve, a joint project of UOL Group, Singapore Land Group and CapitaLand Development on the former Thomson View site nearby, slated for launch in the fourth quarter of 2026, one of several 2026 sites, alongside the Bayshore Drive mixed-use GLS tender (propertynewsasia.com/tag/bayshore/), reshaping Singapore's land-price map, within a Southeast Asian investment landscape where Singapore remains a comparatively high-cost, high-stability market (propertynewsasia.com/best-southeast-asian-countries-for-real-estate-investment-in-2025/).

What isn't confirmed yet?

URA's release confirms only the award, the price and the site parameters. Neither URA nor Eco World has published a unit count, floor plan mix or selling price for the eventual project, and the above-$3,000-psf estimates are analyst projections, not developer guidance.

FAQs

What did Eco World Development pay for the Lorong Puntong/Sin Ming Avenue site?

$208,099,000 in total, equivalent to $1,612 per square foot per plot ratio, according to URA's tender award notice published 18 September 2026.

How many bids did the site draw, and who came second?

Seven. The second-highest offer, $187.33 million ($1,451 psf ppr), came from a joint venture linked to Hong Leong Holdings and TID.

When will new homes on this site launch, and how much will they cost?

Eco World has said it plans to launch the project, under a series it calls VERSIONE, in 2028. No official pricing has been released; some analysts estimate a launch price above $3,000 psf based on the land cost, but this is not a confirmed figure.

Sources and Method

This article is based on the Urban Redevelopment Authority's tender award notice for Lorong Puntong/Sin Ming Avenue, published 18 September 2026, cross-checked against EdgeProp Singapore's tender-result reporting (via Yahoo News Singapore, 15 September 2026, byline Ashley Lo) and EdgeProp.my's award report (18 September 2026, byline Halim Yaacob), which cited Eco World Development's own statement and commentary from CBRE, PropNex, Newmark, Huttons Asia and Realion/OrangeTee and ETC. Historical Bishan land-sale and resale figures are drawn from CBRE Research as reported by EdgeProp. All figures were checked against at least two independent sources before drafting.