IJM Land to launch properties worth RM1bil

PETALING JAYA: IJM Land Bhd, the listed subsidiary of construction firm IJM Corp Bhd, plans to launch over RM1bil worth of properties in the financial year ending March 31, 2010 (FY10).

So far, according to managing director Datuk Soam Heng Choon, major launches include The Light Linear in Penang with a gross development value (GDV) of RM200mil, Nusa Duta in Johor with a GDV of RM78mil and existing phases of Seremban 2 with a GDV of RM32mil.

He said the company would launch more than 20 projects in FY10. Last year the company launched RM600mil worth of properties.

Datuk Krishnan Tan ... ‘Over time, IJM Land will take over projects now under the IJM Corp umbrella.’

Meanwhile, IJM Land chairman Datuk Krishnan Tan said recent launches especially in Penang had been very well received by the market. “We’re looking forward to better times in line with market sentiments,” he told reporters after the company AGM yesterday.

However, Tan cautioned that these launches, which would involve the company’s existing and new projects throughout the country, would very much depend on economic conditions. “The realistic approach is to see how fast you can run in the time given and at the same time have a clear view of the horizon,” he said on how the company would weather another economic contraction.

Tan said the major obstacle was if consumer sentiment fell should the jobless rate in the country rise on a less rosy economic outlook. “Let’s hope there’s no double dip,” he said referring to the country’s economic performance.

Tan said conditions going forward were bright with ample liquidity and lower interest rates while expectations of increasing property costs brought on by higher building material and land prices would also spur the market.

On overseas projects, he said IJM Land would spearhead future projects of the group. Tan, who is also chief executive officer and managing director of IJM Corp, said over time IJM Land will take over projects now under the IJM Corp umbrella.

He said there were plans to revive Talam Corp Bhd’s Changchun, China mixed development project, in which IJM Land has a 50% interest, with a launch slated for next year. The project is located in China’s automotive city and has an estimated GDV of RM500mil.

IJM Corp has a 25% stake in Kumpulan Europlus Bhd, the holding company of Talam. Tan said IJM Land was still scouting suitable sites for a project in Vietnam with Ho Chi Minh City as the most viable location.

He said the company had an undeveloped landbank of 5,300 acres with a potential GDV of RM18bil over a 15-year period.

By The Star

IJM Land to unveil RM1b worth of properties

SUBANG JAYA: IJM Land Bhd plans to launch some RM1 billion worth of properties across Malaysia in its current financial year ending March 31, 2010 (FY10) capitalising on improving sentiments in the local real estate market.

The value of the developer’s FY10 launches is two thirds more than the estimated RM600 million unveiled a year earlier.

The RM1 billion worth of launches would comprise about 20 projects, of which more than RM300 million had been introduced to buyers so far, IJM Land managing director Datuk Soam Heng Chun.

These include about RM200 million worth of properties at its “LIGHT Waterfront Penang” mixed development, RM78 million at its niche medium-high to high-end residential project “Nusa Duta” in Johor, and RM32 million worth of shops in Seremban.

“We need to deliver these units to the buyers in two to three years,” Soam told reporters after the company’s shareholders’ meeting here yesterday.

Its parent company IJM Corp Bhd’s chief executive officer and managing director Datuk Krishnan Tan Boon Seng said: “We are looking forward to better times with the improving sentiments in the property market.”

IJM Corp now owns 62% of IJM Land, down from some 75% in September 2008, following share placement exercises in the latter.

The share placements in IJM Land were intended to boost the liquidity of the stock, and increase the number of institutional shareholders in the firm which was conceived following the union between RB Land Holdings Bhd and IJM Properties Sdn Bhd.

Abroad, the firm is undertaking its maiden overseas project — a RM500 million upmarket residential and retail initiative in Changchun, the capital city of Jilin province in northeast China. Shares of IJM Land added five sen or 2.6% to RM2 yesterday.

By The EDGE Malaysia (by Chong Jin Hun)

Mayland property projects reflect its Midas touch

All projects developed by Malaysia Land Properties have appreciated in value and in some cases risen by threefold

Property developer Malaysia Land Properties Sdn Bhd (Mayland) seems to have the "Midas touch" as all projects developed by it have appreciated in value and in some cases, by threefold.

Mayland, whose projects include the integrated Plaza Damas development in Sri Hartamas, Kuala Lumpur, is confident that this trend will continue for the remaining projects planned at the site.

The entire Plaza Damas project, which started in 1998, is located on a 5.95ha site with Phase 1 and Phase 2 taking up 3.54ha.

Mayland is now developing its RM800 million Plaza Damas 3 that will include serviced apartments and possibly a hotel.
"Our track record has spoken for itself. We do not know of anyone who has bought from Mayland and did not make money. We want our customers to make money," its director Winnie Chiu told Business Times in an interview.

She quoted the examples of its Parklane block of shop offices where 91 units were sold from RM880,000 each in 1998 and today their value has appreciated to RM2.5 million.

Its Waldorf and Windsor apartments in Phase 1, which were sold in December 2007 have appreciated in value to RM240,000 from RM141,000 for the 480 sq ft unit, in less than two years.

Chiu expects the same kind of results for its new launches.

In fact, Mayland's projects are so popular, they are snapped up even before they are advertised. And 50 per cent of its purchasers are repeat customers.

"We sold our 72 units of shop offices in Phase 3 within half a day. It was even before we sent out our advertisement for print," she said, adding that each unit costs RM2.3 million.

According to Chiu, Mayland saw a dip in sales in November 2008, which continued until March this year. However, she is no longer worried as she believes that confidence in the market has returned.

"We are seeing a huge pick-up in sales," she said.

Mayland still has available some 5 per cent of 185 units of serviced apartments in Carlton@Sri Hartamas and 30 per cent of its 230-unit Chelsea@Sri Hartamas for sale.

The pricing for a fully furnished unit starts from about RM820 psf for units measuring 500 sq ft to 955 sq ft.

As part of its plan to make Plaza Damas an integrated development, it is also looking at the possibility of having a hotel in Plaza Damas 3.

Plaza Damas 3 will then be linked by an overhead bridge to Hartamas Shopping Centre and Plaza Damas 1 and 2 within two years.

By Business Times (by Vasantha Ganesan)

Aussie firm seeks Malaysian partner for waterfront jobs

AUSTRALIA's Niecon Development Pty Ltd plans to partner Malaysian developers, including government-linked companies to develop waterfront projects here.

Niecon, set up in 1969 in Australia, is a private company with projects mainly in Queensland.

Its head of international sales and marketing Jo Pavlovich said Niecon is in talks with a few developers but declined to name them .

Pavlovich told Business Times in an interview in Kuala Lumpur recently that Niecon is keen to develop waterfront projects in Sabah, Sarawak and Port Klang to replicate what it has done in Australia.
"We want to develop properties in Malaysia so Australians could buy here. There are great opportunities for Australians to own properties under the Malaysia My Second Home initiative," Pavlovich said.

"Malaysia is one of the strongest country in Asia. There is a good working relationship between Malaysia and Australia and we find it easy to do business here," she added.

Pavlovich said Niecon may form a project-related vehicle with interested developers or landowners to undertake developments jointly, or come in as an equity partner.

She said Niecon is open to options and its role in the developments would be in design, project management and marketing.

Pavlovich said Niecon is also interested to develop luxury residences and office towers in Kuala Lumpur.

The company is currently developing two prestigious projects in Queensland, namely The Oracle in Gold Coast and Nirvana, each worth A$850 million (RM2.51 billion) and A$70 million (RM206.5 million).

Pavlovich said the projects are not designed for first time house buyers but purchasers who buy homes as lock-ups or as a holiday destination.

By Business Times (by Sharen Kaur)

TA buying stake in Singapore hotel for RM635mil

PETALING JAYA: TA Enterprise Bhd has proposed to acquire a 30.65% stake in Singapore-based Quayside Gem Ltd, a company incorporated in Mauritius, for S$260.04mil (RM635.8mil) cash from LaSalle Asia Opportunity II SARL.

Quayside Gem owns Swissotel Merchant Court Singapore, a four-star hotel.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia, TA Enterprise said the proposed acquisition would be funded from internally generated funds and external borrowings.

“The acquisition is expected to bring synergistic benefits to the group as it will further enhance TA Enterprise’s hospitality operations in major cities around the world and increase its existing portfolio of hospitality properties,” it said.

TA Enterprise recently concluded the acquisition of the 262-room The Westin Melbourne at a cost of A$160mil.

Its earlier venture into Australia was via the purchase of the 362-room Radisson Plaza Hotel in Sydney in the late 1990s for A$115.5mil It acquired its first hotel property in Canada, the 190-room Aava Whistler Hotel, for C$33 million (RM10mil) last December.

Back in Malaysia, TA Enterprise is also building a six-star hotel and a five-star hotel, located directly opposite the Petronas Twin Towers and at the Jalan Bukit Bintang/Jalan Imbi junction in Kuala Lumpur, respectively.

By The Star

VXL Group planning RM25b resort in China

PETALING JAYA: The VXL Group is planning a resort project with a gross development value (GDV) of RM25 billion in China on 100 sq km located about 250km from Beijing.

The project, to be named “Beijing’s Secret Garden” will comprise a mix of tourist-cum- holiday home development is in planning stages now and will begin major construction works next year.

Expected launch for Southeast Asian buyers would be in 2011, founder and president of VXL Group, Datuk Lim Chee Wah said.

The VXL Group, which was originally founded to realise the Malaysian government’s initiatives for technology transfer in the development of information and communication services in the country, is the parent group of a Hong Kong-listed developer VXL Capital Ltd.

Bursa-listed ICT solutions and services provider Dataprep Holdings Bhd is 39.1%-owned by VXL Holdings Sdn Bhd.

Speaking to reporters after Dataprep’s AGM and EGM yesterday, Lim said the project was still in the early stages, with the developer still gauging consumer needs on amenities as well as composition of units at the project.

To be built over the next 10 to 12 years, depending on demand and economic conditions, the resort would incorporate ski, golf and nature resort elements and possibly traditional Chinese medicine facilities.

Lim said the site is near an existing ski resort and that the group would “hook up” with it.

Infrastructure work has already begun on the project but major construction work would only begin next year as winter would soon be approaching this year.

Project costs for the first phase from 2009 to 2012, consisting of golf course, ski resort, single-family and multiple-family residential units is one billion yuan (RM513.86 million).

The VXL Group will call for open tender for contractors in China within this year.

VXL Group vice-president for investment Chang Yee Er said that the developer was looking more for China-based contractors who were familiar with the country.

She said the Chinese government required projects above a certain value to call for open tender.

By The EDGE Malaysia (by Loong Tse Min)