Berjaya plans US$500m Japan project

Berjaya, controlled by Tan Sri Vincent Tan Chee Yioun, plans to build a hotel and residential properties on Okinawa Island

The Berjaya group is planning to develop a US$500 million (RM1.6 billion) property project in Japan, making it the second major Malaysian firm to invest in the Land of the Rising Sun in less than a month.



On April 15, YTL Corporation completed the purchase of a prime Japanese resort for RM205 million and it plans to purchase more properties there.

Berjaya, controlled by Tan Sri Vincent Tan Chee Yioun, plans to build a hotel and residential properties on Okinawa Island in the south of Japan.

Development is due to start in 2011 or 2012 and the work will take about five years.
Executive director of Berjaya Hotels and Resorts Valen Tan said the group was building a community which will have exclusive residential properties.

Berjaya Hotels and Resorts is the leisure arm of Berjaya Land Bhd.

"The US$500 million is for the entire project. A huge portion, 80 per cent, will be for the hotel and residences," Tan told Business Times in an interview.

"We are in the process of acquiring land there (coastal area in southern Okinawa), 90 per cent of the land (36.45ha) has been acquired, there is still about 10 per cent (4.05ha) to be acquired from the (land) owners," Tan said.

The up-market hotel and residences project will have about 200 rooms.

"We are looking at possibly starting development in one-and-a-half to two years' time when the planning, zoning and permits will come through," he said.

Berjaya has yet to decide if the residences will be sold or leased out.

Tan said that the island is an ideal location as it offers year-round sunshine, compared with other parts of Japan where it snows.

Berjaya Hotels operates six hotels in Malaysia and five hotels abroad. Locally, its top performing hotels are Berjaya Langkawi Resort, Berjaya Redang Resort and Berjaya Times Square Hotel in Kuala Lumpur.

Abroad, its best performing owned and managed properties include its two properties in Seychelles - Berjaya Beau Vallan Bay Resort & Casino and Berjaya and Berjaya Eden Park in London.

It also owns some hotels which are managed by international hotel chains including the Intercontinental Hanoi Westlake Hotel and Sheraton Hanoi Hotel and Towers in Vietnam.

BLand is also building a US$3 billion (RM9.6 billion) resort-type township on a 74.4ha land on Jeju island in Korea.

The development will feature 600 mid-rise apartments, 200 villas and a five-star hotel with 250 rooms and a casino hotel with 500 rooms, a shopping centre and a medical centre.

By Business Times

Hua Yang projects 2010 salesat RM300m

PROPERTY developer Hua Yang Bhd projects its annual revenue to grow to RM500 million in three to five years as it strengthens its position in the affordable housing segment.

For the nine months ended December 31 2009, it posted RM27.2 million in revenue.

The company also plans to move into the premium residential segment within the same period and is expecting some 10 per cent of total sales to come from this sector.

This year, Hua Yang is projecting some RM300 million worth of sales, following the upcoming launch of its One South mixed development project in Sungai Besi, Selangor. The RM750 million project features residential, commercial and retail components.

The development, which will be the key revenue driver to the group, will contribute some RM100 million per year in the span of eight years and development will be carried out in five phases.

"This is in line with our aim to be the top five developer in the country within five to seven years from now. To reach that goal, we need to progressively achieve RM500 million to RM600 million of sales per year," its chief operating officer Ho Wen Yan told a media briefing in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

Construction of Phase One of One South, which consists of 384 shopoffices with a street mall concept, commenced in March this year, with completion slated within three years. Covering 4.3 acres (1.74ha), the built-up area for these shop-offices and retail lots is between 479 sq ft and 2,100 sq ft with prices starting from RM350 per sq ft to RM750 per sq ft.

The next three phases will see the development of serviced apartments, while Phase Five will feature offices.

Ho said one of the unique features of One South is the dual frontage shops that face either the Kuala Lumpur-Seremban Highway or the street mall and serviced apartments.

"Either way, business owners can be assured of maximum frontage and visibility," he added.

Besides One South, Hua Yang has rolled out some RM1 billion worth of projects this year including an upmarket residential project in Seremban Country Heights, an industrial and commercial development in Seremban called the Senawang Link, Symphony Heights serviced apartment in Selayang and exclusive residential called Polo Park in Johor Baru.

The group currently has a landbank of 1,000 acres (405ha) valued at RM1.8 billion.

By Business Times

SunCity, SSTEC collaboration for RM5b eco-city in China

PETALING JAYA: SUNWAY CITY BHD (SunCity) has signed a collaboration agreement with Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City Investment and Development Co., Ltd (SSTEC) to develop 41 hectares of the 3,000-hectare Tianjin Eco-City in Tianjin, China with a gross development value of RM5 billion.

The project will be developed in three stages over five years, with the initial work start earliest in March 2011 and completion by mid 2015.

SunCity's managing director for property development (international) Ngian Siew Siong said SunCity expects the eco-city project to contribute to its earnings only in 2012.

Speaking to reporters on Friday, April 30 after the signing of the collaboration agreement, he said this is the second project undertaken in China.

The first is the RM492 million Sunway Guanghao mixed development project in Jiangyin, which will be launched next month.

The 41-hectare development will incorporate the “Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability” (Lohas) philosophy to promote an ecologically and socially sustainable environment for residents. The Lohas philosophy started in the US in 1998 and consists of five pillars – health and fitness, personal development, environment, sustainable living and social justice.

“Lohas is not just about green buildings. That is only one component of it. Our design will center on these five pillars. One of the concepts of eco-city is that 40% of its residents can work within the city itself,” Ngian said to reporters after the signing ceremony.

SunCity’s development will consist of 90% residential properties, with a waterfront parcel housing exclusive high-end villas. The remaining 10% are commercial areas.

The eco-city is about 40 km from Tianjin city centre and 150 km from Beijing. It is the largest eco-city under development in the world by area size.

Funding for the project will be sourced internally and from bank borrowings in China, said SunCity senior general manager Ong Pang Yen.

“In China, foreign companies can borrow up to 50% of the project cost, while its domestic companies can borrow up from 65% to 70% of the cost,” he said.

SSTEC was incorporated in China and is the master developer for the Tianjin Eco-City. It is a 50:50 venture between the Chinese consortium led by Tianjin TEDA Investment Holding Co., Ltd. and the Singapore consortium led by the Keppel Group.

SunCity is the sole Malaysian developer selected to participate in this project, which enables SunCity a 60% equity stake in the 41 hectares development and a 40% equity stake by SSTEC.

Five more top regional developers are involved in the 3,000-hectare eco-city project: Keppel Land of Singapore, Farglory Group of Taiwan, Shimao of Hong Kong, Mitsui Fudosan of Japan, and Vanke in China.

SunCity said the overseas market provides possible new revenue source to SunCity. China has been identified for the group's regional expansion due to its huge population and high economic growth.

Currently, overseas property development contributes less than 5% to SunCity’s earnings in 2009. Ngian expects this portion to increase to 30% by 2015.

By The EDGE Malaysia (by Aishah Mustapha)

SunCity, Sino-Singapore Tianjin in eco-city collaboration

KUALA LUMPUR: SUNWAY CITY BHD (SunCity) is collaborating with Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City Investment and Development Co. Ltd. (SSTEC) to undertake a "lifestyle of health and sustainability" development project in Tianjin Binhai new area in China.

SunCity said on Friday, April 30 the project Tianjin Eco-City and China, consist of more than 40 hectares with a total residential gross floor area of 607,320 sq metres and a total commercial gross floor area of 99,078 sq metres.

Both parties had entered into a collaboration agreement on Friday to set out the terms of the collaboration regarding the development.

The project will be developed in three stages over five years, with it expected to start the earliest in March 2011 and expected completion in mid 2015.

"The collaboration agreement also detailed out the various stages of the land injection, which is conditional upon SSTEC obtaining the approval from the relevant authorities in China," it said.

SSTEC was incorporated in China and it is the master developer for the Tianjin Eco-City. It is a 50:50 joint venture between the Chinese consortium led by Tianjin TEDA Investment Holding Co., Ltd. and the Singapore consortium led by the Keppel Group.

SunCity said the overseas market provides possible new revenue source to SunCity. China has been identified for the group's regional expansion due to its huge population and high economic growth.

The Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City is about 40 km away from the city centre of Tianjin and 150 km from Beijing.

"Over the next two decades, this 30-square kilometre piece of land will be transformed into an urban city with ample room for large-scale adoption of eco-solutions and 110,000 homes for about 350,000 population," it said.

Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City sits well with SunCity's philosophy of building sustainable and environmental friendly city for the future generation. Its concept of developing green building and promotes sustainable lifestyle attracts potential house buyers who desire to improve their housing conditions.

By The EDGE Malaysia (by Joseph Chin)

Sunway City sees SSTEC contribution in '12

Sunway City Bhd expects contribution from the RM5 billion Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-city (SSTEC) project in China only in 2012, with construction commencing in the first quarter of next year.

Its Managing Director for Property Development (International) Ngian Siew Siong said Sunway City would be involved in developing 41 hectares of the 3,000-hectare Eco-city in five years.

He said this to reporters after a the signing of a collaboration between SSTEC Investment and Development Ltd and Sunway City here today.

This followed a memorandum of understanding (MOU)signed in October 2009 to conduct market research and a feasibility study as well as develop a business plan over a six-month period.
The 41-hectare development will consist of 90 per cent residential properties which include condominiums and a waterfront parcel, featuring exclusive high-end villas.

By Bernama

Equine Capital to sell land to Safetags

EQUINE Capital Bhd (ECB) plans to sell 6.04 acres of leasehold land Petaling, Selangor to Safetags Solution Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of Titijaya Group, for RM19.6 million.

It will use proceeds from the proposed disposal repay bank borrowings and for working capital.

ECB had planned to develop the land into a commercial centre with transportation hub within its Pusat Bandar Putra Permai township.

“The project was launched in 2007 but was shelved in 2009 for the lack of response to sales,” ECB said in a filing to Bursa Malaysia yesterday.

By Business Times

MBSB looks forward to better year

Malaysia Building Society Bhd (MBSB), a housing loan provider, expects higher revenue and net profit this year on stronger growth from its retail business and corporate financing.

"The retail business financing will be supported by personal financing to government servants at a competitive rate. We will support any effort by the government to provide home-financing for government servants for second homes," said MBSB chief executive officer Datuk Ahmad Zaini Othman.

He was speaking to reporters after the company's shareholders meeting in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

As for its corporate loan portfolio, MBSB will provide financing for government contracts which includes construction and supply or even project financing, said Ahmad Zaini.
For its financial year ended December 31, MBSB saw its revenue grow 29 per cent to RM537.96 million, while net profit surged 76 per cent to RM57.2 million.

Its retail loans and financing in 2009 was up 27.1 per cent, driven by a 101 per cent overall growth in Islamic financing.

"We came out from a difficult 2009. With the local economy forecast to grow between 4.5 per cent and 5 per cent, MBSB expects earnings to improve as well," said Ahmad Zaini, adding that improved domestic consumption would spur its lending activities.

While the local overnight policy rate may increase further this year, he said MBSB will continue to offer competitive rates for its products.

On its plan to become a full-fledged bank, MBSB said the rationale behind it was to strengthen its presence and a banking platform would allow it to do so.

"Currently, we are just at the discussion stage and have not submitted anything official as it will require shareholders' approval first. Moving from a mere lending institution to a bank will also enhance the value for our shareholders," said Ahmad Zaini.

With some 32 branches at present, MBSB will add one in Sabah or Sarawak and two in Peninsular Malaysia this year.

On the development plans for its 2ha land in Sungai Buloh, Selangor, Ahmad Zaini said a possibility was to have a mixed development with an estimated gross development value of RM300 million to RM400 million.

By Business Times