Exclusive|Singapore-headquartered GLP eyes 50% rent surge as China demand fuels growth

GLP, a global operator and investor in logistics, digital infrastructure, renewable energy and finance, is deepening its commitment to China’s growth, projecting as much as a 50 per cent rise in logistics rental rates, supported by stronger domestic consumption and wider adoption of alternative energies. Angela Zhao, CEO of GLP China, said the country’s 15th five-year development plan for 2026 to 2030 would further cement the company’s role as a global thematic investor in “new economy” industries. “In logistics, as market supply stabilises, we expect rents to trend towards pre-Covid-19 levels, which reflect a 30 to 50 per cent upside from where we are today,” Zhao told the South China Morning Post. “In data centres and new energy, we believe we are in the early stages of a generational growth cycle and just scratching the surface in terms of demand.” GLP, the developer and operator of more than 420 logistics and business parks across 70 Chinese cities, has 40 million square metres of properties under management in the world’s second-largest economy. Its China operations own 2.7 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy generating capacity, with 1.5GW already connected to power grids. One GW can supply about 750,000 households for a year. The Singapore-headquartered company is reportedly planning an initial public offering in Hong Kong with a targeted valuation of about US$20 billion, according to a source familiar with the matter. Zhao declined to comment on the fundraising issue. On renewables, she said GLP’s generating capacity would grow substantially in the coming years, driven by its new energy investments. “Warehouses and data centres are intensive energy users,” Zhao said. “By integrating renewable energy with our real asset operations, GLP can unlock synergies between property management and renewable energy to improve operating efficiency and profitability.” Beijing has stepped up efforts to expand domestic demand as a prolonged property slump drags on growth. In the work report presented to the National People’s Congress earlier this month, the central government announced a special fund of 100 billion yuan (US$14.5 billion) and the issuance of ultra-long special treasury bonds worth 250 billion yuan to promote retail spending, with subsidies for purchases of consumer products such as cars and home appliances this year. In the five-year plan, Beijing reiterated that boosting domestic demand would be a crucial task. “As the five-year plan places domestic consumption in a very important position, boosting domestic consumption will definitely have a positive driving effect on the demand and growth of our logistics segment,” Zhao said. “The vast majority of our logistics businesses serve the domestic market.” GLP China also runs 20 digital infrastructure campuses, home to data centres of global and domestic companies. Zhao, promoted to China CEO in January after serving as GLP’s China head of logistics and industrial real estate, said she would further strengthen integration and synergies across “new economy” platforms in the country as new opportunities arose. On the mainland, coal consumption rose by 0.1 per cent last year, accounting for 51.4 per cent of total energy use, compared with 53.2 per cent in 2024, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. The share of clean energy sources – including natural gas, hydropower, nuclear power, wind power and solar power – reached 30.4 per cent, up from 28.6 per cent. In China, GLP has more than 3,000 corporate clients, including US retail giant Walmart and Chinese e-commerce behemoth Alibaba Group Holding, which owns the SCMP.