A plum industrial white site near Tai Seng MRT station fetched a top bid of $120 million Friday from a Mapletree unit in a seven-way contest.

This works out to about $271 per sq ft (psf) per plot ratio (ppr) and was 13.5 per cent above the second-highest bid lodged by a Far East Organization unit.

The 1.18 ha land parcel along Tai Seng Street, when developed, will form "the epicentre of Paya Lebar iPark", JTC said when it launched the tender in September last year.

It is on a 30-year leasehold and is likely to house industries compatible with food manufacturing.

Mapletree owns real estate investment trusts such as Mapletree Industrial Trust.

SLP International research head Nicholas Mak said the plot was attractive to real estate investment trusts and property funds because it was directly linked to the Tai Seng MRT station.

It is also rare to find a site zoned 'B2-White', he said. About 28.6 per cent of the gross floor area is zoned for 'white' use. Mr Mak said that portion is likely to be used for office and retail space.