RM500m Azea latest project in Danga Bay

A RM500 million high-end mixed development known as Azea Properties will be coming up on a 1.7ha site in Danga Bay, Johor Baru, one of the the key flagship zones within Iskandar Malaysia.

A joint-venture agreement to develop the commercial project was signed among Imperial Marine Pte Ltd, Danga Bay Sdn Bhd and Pembinaan Sahabatjaya Sdn Bhd in Johor Baru yesterday.

Johor Mentri Besar Batuk Abdul Ghani Othman, who is also the joint-chairman of the Iskandar Regional Development Authority, witnessed the signing ceremony. .

Imperial Marine, a Singapore-based property investment company helmed by Tan Yang Po, will invest RM150 million or 30 per cent of the cost of the project, while Danga Bay will put in RM185 million (37 per cent).

Pembinaan Sahabatjaya Sdn Bhd will invest RM165 million, or 33 per cent of the project cost.

Danga Bay is a waterfront master developer with landbank over 182ha along the Straits of Johor, while Pembinaan Sahabatjaya, a building and civil engineering company, has successfully undertaken projects worth over RM1.3 billion since 1999.

Tan, also the chief executive officer of Azea Property Investment Pte Ltd, has property investments around the world including in the UK and the US, where over RM50 million worth of its choice residential properties have been snapped up.

The proposed waterfront development in Danga Bay would comprise 700 units of serviced apartments spread over four tower blocks. Selling prices range between RM650 and RM880 per sq ft.

Retail spaces will also be incorporated into the buildings.

The latest joint-venture comes on the heels of several major recent investments in Danga Bay, including a RM40 million hotel by Tune Hotels Sdn Bhd and a RM150 million four-star hotel to be built by a Kuala Lumpur based developer.

By Business Times

UEM Land to buy plots from Inch Kenneth

UEM Land Holdings Bhd is buying two plots of plantation land in Bangi, Selangor, from Inch Kenneth Kajang Rubber Public Ltd Co for RM268.5 million.

It plans to develop a new township on the land measuring 187.5ha, UEM Land said in a filing to Bursa Malaysia Bhd yesterday.

The company said the proposed acquisition forms part of its strategic plans that include securing at least one new township development outside Nusajaya in Johor by 2015.

This is to enable it to diversify its development portfolio and revenue sources in order to achieve its long-term growth strategy.
UEM Land said the earlier acquisition of land in Cyberjaya in December 2008 as well as the takeover offer for property developer Sunrise Bhd are examples of the strategy.

"Collectively, the move to diversify our development portfolio is also aimed at mitigating the group's market risk and geographical concentration risk," it said.

UEM Land said the Bangi land is a freehold land, strategically located within the growth area of Bandar Baru Bangi where several new townships such as Alam Sari and Bandar Seri Putra are currently being developed.

The proposed acquisition will not have any financial impact on the company's current year ending December 31 2010 as the exercise is only expected to be completed in the next financial year.

UEM Land said it planned to develop the land as a new township as soon as possible once the acquisition is completed by March 31 2011.

Spanning over a 10-year development period, it expects an estimated gross development value of RM2.84 billion.

By Business Times

UEM Land to buy land in Bangi for RM268mil

PETALING JAYA: UEM Land Holdings Bhd said it planned to acquire two parcels of freehold agricultural land in Bangi for RM268.5mil from Inch Kenneth Kajang Rubber Public Ltd Co to develop the land into a comprehensive and integrated township.

It told Bursa Malaysia yesterday that its wholly-owned unit UEM Land Bhd wanted to buy the land measuring 463.51 acres at RM13.30 per sq ft.

These indicative terms have been laid out in an offer letter submitted to Inch Kenneth, but both parties have yet to sign a definitive sale and purchase agreement.

The purchase price is based on an indicative market valuation of the land appraised by Messrs Raine and Horne International Zaki + Partners Sdn Bhd on an as is basis with the benefit of two separate unencumbered freehold titles, with vacant possession of RM248.3mil or RM12.30 psf and the development potential and prospects of the land.

UEM Land Holdings said the acquisition was part of the group's strategic plan to have at least one new township development outside Nusajaya by 2015.

This would enable the group to diversify its development portfolio and revenue sources outside Nusajaya for its long term growth strategy.

The group's purchase of land parcels in Cyberjaya in December 2008 (now known as Symphony Hills) as well as the Sunrise offer are examples of this strategy being implemented, it said in its filing.

The Bangi land, which was an oil palm plantation estate, was a freehold land and the approval to convert the land to mixed development status was obtained by IncKen in 2007.

It was located within the growth area of Bandar Baru Bangi where several new townships such as Alam Sari and Bandar Seri Putra are currently being developed and could be accessed via the North South Expressway and the LEKAS Highway.

Under UEM Land Holdings's preliminary development master plan, the estimated gross development value was estimated at RM2.84bil spanning 10 years.

The proposed acquisition is expected to contribute positively to the group's future earnings and to further enhance its profile as a reputable township developer, it said.

The group plans to fund the purchase from the remaining un-utilised proceeds raised from a rights issue completed in April, internally generated fund and/or if need be, bank borrowings.

The balance un-utilised proceeds earmarked for property development expenditure and general working capital for the group stands at RM168mil on Nov 22.

By The Star

Pantai plans RM500mil expansion of hospital network

KUALA LUMPUR: The Pantai Group plans to expand its network of hospitals in Iskandar Malaysia at an estimated cost of RM500mil.

The group, which has already acquired a 15-acre piece of land in Medini, Iskandar, plans to build a healthcare complex of comprising a 300-bed private tertiary hospital, a 150-suite medical office block with centres of excellence that will address healthcare concerns of a growing yet maturing population.

The development of the project, which will bear the name Gleneagles Medini Hospital, will be done in phases and is slated to be one of the premium hospitals under Parkway Health. The agreement was signed between Pantai Hospital Johor Sdn Bhd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Pantai Hospitals Sdn Bhd, which in turn is a wholly owned subsidiary of Pantai Holdings Berhad and Global Capital & Development Sdn Bhd (GCD), a consortium led by Mubadala Development Company.

We are proud to be working with such an established international healthcare provider to bring top quality healthcare to Medini.

The high standards set by Pantai aligned with GCD's vision to ensure the best in planning, design and management within Medini. We will work closely with Pantai to develop a world class facility that will put Iskandar Malaysia at the forefront of healthcare in South-East Asia, said Keith Martin, chief executive of GCD in a statement yesterday.

This development is a key step in establishing healthcare as a catalyst sector in Iskandar Malaysia and will set new benchmarks for quality healthcare (in Malaysia), said Pantai Holdings chairman Khairil Anuar Abdullah.

capacity for delivering world-class medical services to both Malaysians and foreign patient.

By leveraging on the strategic positioning of Iskandar, the hospital will be well positioned to serve the growing demand for medical travel in the region, and will provide even better medical facilities to the people of Johor.

This facility is targeted to meet the demands for high quality, yet affordable, healthcare in Malaysia, Singapore and wherever such services are not available, said said Pantai Holdings chairman Khairil Anuar Abdullah.

By The Star