Scientex buys 503 acres in Pulai, Johor, at RM26.50 psf

Scientex Bhd has agreed to buy 502.59 acres of freehold land in Mukim Pulai, Johor Bahru district, for RM580.16 million, a flat RM26.50 psf across all 14 lots. The seller is Pangkal Budiman Sdn Bhd, an oil palm and property company in the Leong Hup Holdings group whose directors include Tan Sri Lau Tuang Nguang. Scientex's subsidiary Scientex Quatari Sdn Bhd signed the agreement on 6 October 2026, and completion is expected in the second half of 2027.

The land

• Size: 14 freehold lots, 203.39 hectares (502.59 acres, about 21.9 million sq ft), bought en bloc with vacant possession
• Location: next to Scientex's own Taman Pulai Mutiara, Taman Pulai Mutiara 2, Taman Pulai Duta and Taman Pulai Duta 2, about 33 km from Johor Bahru city centre and 5.5 km from the Second Link interchange, reached via the Johor Bahru–Senai Expressway, the Skudai–Pontian Highway and Jalan Kangkar Pulai
• Titles: agricultural titles that cannot be sold to foreigners without state consent. Because the seller had submitted development plans, Johor's land office treats them as block titles (Hakmilik Blok), which the seller must renew before the sale completes. One lot is still marked for oil palm
• Plan: a mixed development; Scientex says it is too early to give a development value or timetable

The deal

• Payment: 10% (RM58.02 million) by signing, including a 3% retention for real property gains tax, and the RM522.14 million balance within three months of the approvals, with an automatic one-month extension at 6% a year
• Conditions: Johor Land and Mines Office approval to renew the block titles and, if needed, to transfer them, plus Estate Land Board approval, within nine months with an automatic three-month extension
• Price basis: willing buyer, willing seller, with reference to nearby land; no valuation was done
• Funding: internal funds and bank borrowings. Scientex had RM357.8 million of cash and RM2.05 billion of borrowings at 31 July 2026, with net gearing of 0.38 times
• Approvals: no shareholder vote is needed

Four Pulai purchases since 2017

• December 2017: 335.57 acres from DKTMG Land for RM284.19 million, RM19.44 psf
• September 2020: 202.24 acres from Lee Pineapple Company for RM185.01 million, RM21.00 psf
• June 2024: 350.26 acres from Lee Pineapple Company for RM381.43 million, RM25.00 psf, completed in February 2025
• October 2026: 502.59 acres from Pangkal Budiman for RM580.16 million, RM26.50 psf

That adds up to about 1,390 acres agreed in Mukim Pulai since 2017, with the price per sq ft up 36%, or about 3.6% a year. Scientex started in Pulai in 1995 with Taman Pulai Mutiara on 326 acres and says more than 90% of the units it has launched there have sold.

The Penang comparison

Scientex also buys on Penang's mainland, for much less per sq ft. In 2019 it bought 179.7 acres in Mukim 12, Seberang Perai Utara, for RM109.59 million (RM14 psf), and in 2024 it paid RM462.50 million for 708.48 acres in Seberang Perai Selatan, about RM15 psf, completed in October 2024. Pulai's RM26.50 psf is about 77% above that 2024 price. The company aims to complete 50,000 affordable homes nationwide by 2028, and The Edge reports it has delivered 47,000 so far.