CapitaLand India Trust (SGX: CY6U), or CLINT, is a business trust that invests in properties that capitalises on the growing IT industry, industrial and logistics asset class, along with new economy asset classes such as data centres.

As at 31 December 2024, CLINT’s portfolio comprises of properties in the following 5 top tier cities in India worth S$3.7 billion:

  • Bangalore: International Tech Park Bangalore (ITPB), CapitaLand Data Centre ITPB
  • Chennai: International Tech Park Chennai (ITPC), CyberValue (CV), CapitaLand Data Centre Chennai, Industrial Facility 1, Mahindra World City (IF1, MWC), Industrial Facility 2 and 3, Mahindra World City (IF2 and IF3, MWC)
  • Hyderabad: International Tech Park Hyderabad (ITPH), CyberPearl, aVance Hyderabad, CapitaLand Data Centre ITPH
  • Mumbai: Building Q1, Aurum Q Parc, Building Q2, Aurum Q Parc [acquired in July 2024], CapitaLand Data Centre Navi Mumbai, Logistics Park
  • Pune: International Tech Park Pune Hinjawadi (ITPP-H), aVance I, Pune, aVance II, Pune [acquired in March 2024]

Even though CLINT is structured as a business trust, it has voluntarily adopted restrictions of a REIT, including the capping of gearing ratio at 50%, and distributing at least 90% of distributable income, all of which with the aim of enhancing the stability of distribution to unitholders.

Recently, I have the honour of meeting up with CLINT’s CEO Mr Gauri Shankar Nagabhushanam, and CFO Mr Cheah Ying Soon, where they shared with me the business trust’s growth plans. I also took the opportunity to seek clarification on some of the concerns that fellow retail investors have. You can read about it in a post I’ve published last Monday (24 March 2025) here.

Following the conclusion of the financial year on 31 December 2024 (i.e., FY2024), CLINT published its annual report 2024 last Thursday (27 March 2025), and in this post, you will find key pointers to take note, along with details about its upcoming annual general meeting (AGM):

Key Highlights from CLINT’s Annual Report 2024

Riding on Tailwinds in India:

  • In 2024, India maintained its status as the fastest growing economy in the world with a GDP growth of 5.4%, with the International Monetary Fund projecting a GDP growth of 7.0% in 2025.
  • Prospects in India’s commercial real estate market remain promising (where the India office market saw 79 million square feet of IT park space leased in 2024 (an improvement from 62 million square feet in 2023), which is a historic peak for the country’s office markets; CLINT rode on the healthy leasing momentum and managed to lease or renew 2.8 million square feet of space in 2024), with the country’s growing appeal to multinational corporations and accelerating digital transformation expected to drive sustained demand for high-quality office spaces.
  • Key infrastructure growth and a young, expanding workforce, continue to support India’s economic growth, and that of CLINT’s business.

FY2024 Performance Highlights:

  • Total property income and net property income grew by 19% and 14% year on year respectively, to S$277.9 million and S$205.6 million, underpinned by income recognition from properties acquired in 2024 (aVance II, Pune, and Building Q2) and 2023 (ITPH Block A, ITPP-H, as well as Industrial Facility 2 & 3), higher rental income from existing assets, and positive rental reversions.
  • Total property expenses increased by 33% year on year to S$72.3 million due to operating expenses from existing and newly acquired properties, as well as self-operation of the Logistics Park, Navi Mumbai which was previously under a sub-lease agreement.
  • Income available for distribution rose by 7% year on year to S$101.5 million, mainly due to higher net property income, partially offset by higher current income tax and net finance costs (which increased by 10% year on year to S$90.3 million, due to an increase in borrowings, which were taken largely to invest in CLINT’s committed forward purchase pipeline projects, development projects, and new acquisitions during the year).
  • Distribution payout to unitholders increased 6% year on year to S$0.0684.
  • Net Asset Value grew by 19% year on year to S$1.38 due to new acquisitions and higher valuation of CLINT’s properties.
  • Portfolio occupancy improved to 95%, which can be attributed to strong demand from Global Capability Centres (GCCs), Global Multinational Corporations (MNCs), and prominent local information technology (IT) companies for its business park spaces.
  • Gearing ratio is at 38.5%, with a debt headroom of S$1.03 billion (based on the gearing limit of 50%), providing the business trust with the financial flexibility to capitalise on future growth opportunities.

Updates on CLINT’s Data Centre Development:

  • CLINT’s Navi Mumbai and Hyderabad data centres will be operational by 2Q 2025, with keen interest expressed by hyberscaler and enterprise clients.
  • On this note, CLINT has signed a long-term agreement with a leading global hyperscaler for its data centres in India, and the management expects to pre-lease approximately half of the business trust’s total gross power capacity under development. This underscores the strong demand for their data centre solutions, as well as demonstrating CLINT’s capabilities in designing, developing, and operating state-of-the-art data centres.
  • Looking ahead, CLINT’s management expect the data centre portfolio to contribute at least 25% of the business trust’s revenue by 2028 (however, this may change based on new acquisitions or divestments).

Strategic Growth & Expansion Efforts:

  • In February 2024, CLINT have announced the proposed acquisition of 3 industrial facilities at OneHub Chennai, marking a strategic move into the industrial sector in South India, with the acquisition expected to capitalise on Chennai’s emerging status as a hub for electronics component manufacturing.
  • In March 2024, CLINT completed its acquisition of aVance II, Pune – a 1.4 million square feet multi-tenanted IT SEZ project boasting a high-quality tenant roster.
  • In July 2024, CLINT acquired Building Q2, a fully leased IT Non-SEZ office building at Aurum Q Parc business park in Navi, Mumbai. This is in addition to its multi-tenanted building (MTB) 6 at ITPB, a 0.8 million square feet building, being fully pre-leased to a major semiconductor tenant.
  • In February 2025, CLINT announced the proposed acquisition of a 1.1 million square feet office project strategically located at Nagawara in Bangalore, which will further strengthen the business trust’s presence in the city, which is one of India’s most prominent office micro-markets. Currently, completed floor area stood at 21.9 million square feet, with a further development potential of 7.1 million square feet.

CLINT’s Acquisition Strategy:

  • CLINT pursue acquisitions that offer attractive cash flow and returns relative to its weighted average cost of capital.
  • For IT/ITES (Information Technology/Information Technology Enabled Services) spaces, the business trust have targeted acquisitions in Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Chennai, Pune, and NCR (comprising Delhi, Gurgaon, and Noida), because of their established base of tech firms and sizeable pool of skilled workforce.
  • For logistics/industrial locations, CLINT is also targeting acquisitions in the outskirts of Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, and NCR to tap into the demand from companies looking to set up manufacturing facilities in India.
  • Additionally, it has also significantly increased its diversification into the fast-growing data centre segment in India, to capitalise on the rapidly growing economy in the country.
  • At the same time, CLINT also look to unlock value through divesting non-core assets which have lower longer-term strategic value to strengthen its balance sheet and enhance financial flexibility and unlock value by recycling capital into more accretive investments.

Update on CLINT’s ESG Journey:

  • Achieved a 5-star rating for Standing Investments in the 2024 GRESB Real Estate Assessment, ranking among the top 20% globally with a total score of 90 out of 100.
  • Awarded the Corporate Sustainability Award at the SIAS Investors’ Choice Awards 2024.
  • Attained an ESG ‘A’ rating from MSCI.

Outlook Ahead:

  • Prospects of India’s commercial real estate market remain promising, with the country’s growing appeal to multinational corporations and accelerating digital transformation expected to drive sustained demand for high-quality office spaces.
  • Demand for secure, reliable, and scalable data centre infrastructure in India is also expected to accelerate, with CLINT well-positioned to meet the needs of hyperscalers.
  • CLINT’s strategic focus on developing and acquiring business parks and data centres in key India cities puts it in a favourable position to capitalise on these trends, with the management anticipating strong leasing momentum driven by the increasing requirements of its existing tenants and growing interest from new occupiers.

Details of CLINT’s AGM

When? Monday, 28 April 2025
Where? Marina Bay Sands Expo & Convention Centre, Level 3, Begonia Junior Ballroom, 10 Bayfront Avenue, Singapore 018956
Time? 2.30pm

The meeting will be held in a wholly physical format, with no option for unitholders to attend virtually.

For unitholders whose holdings are in the CDP account, no pre-registration is required, as verification will be performed at the event venue.

However, for unitholders whose holdings are in a custodian account, if you like to attend the meeting, you will need to get in touch with your brokerage to appoint you to attend as a proxy.

Closing Thoughts

To round up, it has been a good year for CLINT as far as its financial performances (where both its gross revenue and net property income saw year-on-year growths by a double-digit percentage, contributed by existing and newly acquired properties), portfolio occupancy (where it was at a high of 95%), debt profile (with aggregate leverage kept at under 40%), and distribution payout (for information, CLINT is one of the few Singapore-listed REITs and business trusts that manage to report a year-on-year improvement in its distribution payout, as many saw declines due to an increase in finance costs) are concerned.

Looking forward, I’m of the opinion that CLINT will continue to benefit from India’s continued economic growth, where they are one of the beneficiaries of the trade war between the world’s 2 biggest superpowers, the United States and China; in recent years, we have seen an increasing number of companies moving their manufacturing to India. This is on top of the fact that the country having a huge young educated population (together with the fact that they have a good command of English, and the relatively low staff cost, this has led to companies setting up base in the country).

With that, I have come to the end of my sharing on the key pointers to take note of in CLINT’s latest annual report for 2024. Do take note that all the opinions expressed in this post are purely mine which I’m sharing for educational purposes only. They are not meant as any buy or sell calls for the business trust’s units. You are strongly encouraged to do your own due diligence before you make any investment decisions.

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Disclaimer: At the time of writing, I am a unitholder of CapitaLand India Trust.

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