Westlite to expand workers' accommodation operations in Malaysia

• Westlite currently has workers' accommodation in Johor, Penang and Selangor with a total of 25,099 beds as of June 30

KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 14): Westlite Accommodation Malaysia aspires to expand its operations in Malaysia, said Centurion Corp Ltd chief executive officer Kong Chee Min in a media briefing on Tuesday (Sept 13). Centurion, which is listed in Singapore and Hong Kong, owns Westlite — a purpose-built workers' accommodation brand.

Westlite currently has workers' accommodation in Johor, Penang and Selangor with a total of 25,099 beds as of June 30, generating a revenue of S$6.7 million (RM21.61 million) in the first half of 2022, revealed Kong.

He said, "We will continue to expand in these locations as we have a foothold there. But our aspiration is to expand to other states as well… We would love to work with state governments, property owners, who have buildings vacant and they wish to look at workers' accommodation being an asset class and therefore they wish for us to do conversion into a workers' accommodation. We also look at landowners as well, who are interested in this sector and we can help them do the preparations."

Kong added that they wish to export their business model and scale that model into many parts of Malaysia including Sabah and Sarawak. Their business model includes management of workers' accommodation, master leasing and small equity. "The objective is to grow bigger and expand our services to the whole of Malaysia," Kong said.

To date, Westlite has compiled the new regulatory specifications in the Workers' Minimum Standards of Housing and Amenities (Amendment) Act 2019 (Act 446), which align with the International Labour Organization standards.

"All dormitories in Westlite's portfolio have since received the Certificate of Accommodation from the Department of Labour Peninsular Malaysia or Jabatan Tenaga Kerja Semenanjung Malaysia," it said in a press statement.

The amended Act makes it mandatory for employers to provide suitable accommodation to migrant workers which include the "provision of utilities and amenities such as bathroom, toilet, bed and mattress, a locked cupboard as well as sufficient space for cooking, resting and eating".

"Westlite is always exploring ways to grow organically by reconfiguring spaces to increase capacity. In [the second quarter of 2022,] asset management works carried out at Westlite Tebrau for instance added 688 beds to the portfolio. With more employers including SMEs (small and medium enterprises) striving to comply with Act 446, we expect to see a growth in demand for high-quality, thoughtfully constructed and professionally managed workers' accommodations," Kong said.

Westlite has been in the workers' accommodation business since August 2011 and as of June 30, the company managed eight properties in Malaysia and nine in Singapore with a total of 33,898 beds.

The group also operates purpose-built student accommodation assets in the UK, the US, Australia and South Korea with 6,080 beds in 19 properties. As a group, Centurion owned, developed and managed a portfolio of 36 specialised assets with a total of 65,077 beds as of June 30.