Archive for category: Misc

Situated along Zion Road is Zion Road Condo, providing easy access to both commercial outlets and recreational destinations. Residents of the condominium enjoy conveniences such as nearby eateries, grocery stores and even Orchard Road shopping belt. Other amenities such as parks, nature reserves and public transport options can be found in the vicinity. Besides been just a short distance away, the Orchard MRT station provides Zion Road Condo residents easy access to different parts of Singapore via the North-South Line. Moreover, the future Havelock MRT station of the Thomson-East Coast Line will provide an additional transport option for Zion Road Condo dwellers.

Occupiers increasingly seeking out sustainable buildings throughout the Asia Pacific (Apac) region could be disappointed, with JLL’s October research report highlighting a critical undersupply in major cities. The need for greener buildings is driven by a commitment to meet net-zero carbon (NZC) targets, but the reality is that many properties fail to meet these conditions. Kamya Miglani, head of ESG Research, Asia Pacific at JLL, commented: “Leasing office space in green-certified office buildings is becoming non-negotiable for occupiers, but currently there is very little correlation between these certifications and a building’s energy performance. Even buildings with platinum-grade green certifications may not be NZC-ready, partly because current regulations are not stringent enough to demand NZC-ready assets.”

JLL’s Sustainable Offices City Index evaluated 20 cities in the Apac region, and found a wide variation in current supply of green-qualified buildings. Sydney, the area’s top-ranked city, is set to experience an 84% undersupply of NZC-ready office space by 2027. Other cities face different levels of the same challenge; for instance, Hong Kong and Mumbai are both set for a 68% and 62% supply deficit of top-quality sustainable offices respectively. Singapore expects a 56% undersupply, while Melbourne and Delhi will be 43% and 44% respectively.

Miglani believes that this will lead to a snowball effect as occupiers “risk being stuck with limited options if they fail to plan ahead and re-evaluate the sustainability credentials of their current premises”. She adds that governments must increase the rate of retrofitting to ensure the growing demand can be met. In some cities, this is already taking place. Australia has introduced an energy performance measure into its National Environment Rating System which rewards building owners for securing renewable energy sources, while Singapore offers subsidies to those attaining certain energy standards.

Given the wide-reaching critical undersupply of sustainable offices in the Apac region, it’s important for governments, occupiers, and landlords to work together to address this challenge. With the right focus, energy-efficiency retrofits have the potential to meet future regulations, and in turn the demand for NZC-ready buildings.