Sime Darby in JV with CapitaMalls to build RM670mil Melawati Mall

KUALA LUMPUR: Sime Darby Property and CapitaMalls Asia Ltd are jointly developing a shopping mall with an expected total development cost of about RM670mil.

Sime Darby said in a statement that under the 50:50 joint venture, they would develop Melawati Mall in the Taman Melawati commercial area. To be completed at the end of 2016, it will have a net lettable area of about 620,000 sq ft.

Melawati Mall will comprise eight levels of retail and five levels of basement car park.

“Positioned as a one-stop retail and lifestyle destination, Melawati Mall aspires to bring the city shopping experience, with its comprehensive and fashionable offerings, to the residents of Melawati township and nearby towns.

“When it is completed, the mall, fronting the Middle Ring Road 2 (MRR2), will serve an estimated 800,000 people within a 15-minute drive,” it said.

Present at yesterday’s groundbreaking and construction event for Melawati Mall were Sime Darby Bhd chief operating officer Datuk Wahab Maskan, who is also Sime Darby Property managing director, and Capitamalls Asia chief executive officer Lim Beng Chee.

“Our collaboration with CapitaMalls Asia to develop Melawati Mall is well in line with Sime Darby Property’s strategic direction to participate in joint venture partnerships with reputable companies that can further unlock the value of our landbank and further enhance value from asset managementm,” Wahab said.

“Moreover, the success of this collaboration may pave the way for other possible future strategic partnerships with CapitaMalls Asia in Malaysia or overseas.”

Capitamalls Asia has interests in and manages a pan-Asian portfolio of 103 shopping malls across 52 cities in the five countries of Singapore, China, Malaysia, Japan and India, with a total property value of approximately S$34bil.

The Star, 4/10/2013

Only 10% of land proposed for Kidex will be acquired

ONLY 10% of the proposed 3,784 lots of land and houses may be acquired by the Government for the proposed Kinrara-Damansara Expressway (Kidex).

The Malaysian Highway Authority deputy director-general Mohd Saleh Santhiman said although 3,784 lots comprising residential, commercial and industrial land, were part of the preliminary study, only 10% might finally be acquired for the project.

Mohd Saleh said the highway routes were the same as mentioned by Bukit Gasing assemblyman Rajiv Rishyakaran at a press conference with the media recently.

It will start from New Klang Valley Expressway (NKVE) and head towards Kinrara in Puchong.

“The Kidex expressway will mostly be an elevated highway, passing over some of the existing roads.

“We are now in the study stage and the number of lots that will be acquired can only be determined once the road design is finalised,” he said.

The expressway will pass through areas such as Tropicana Mall, SSTwo Mall, Rothman’s traffic light, Section 14, Amcorp Mall, Hilton Petaling Jaya, Jalan Templer roundabout, Taman Datuk Harun, Taman Medan Baru and Bandar Kinrara.

Mohd Saleh said the public would be briefed on the highway project during the land surveying process but did not state a date.

In a StarMetro report recently, it was stated that 3,784 lots of land, mostly in Petaling Jaya, might be acquired by the Government for Kidex.

The matter was first highlighted by Rajiv and Petaling Jaya City councillor Lee Suet Sen.

It also said Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua had raised the issue in Parliament recently.

It was also reported that residents want the relevant bodies to keep them informed on the proposed project.

They said they should be included in the decision-making process.

The residents, mostly senior citizens, added that they were worried their houses might be acquired for the highway project.

They said the Government should provide better public transport such as the LRT or bus services, instead of spending money on Kidex.

Kidex is estimated to cost RM2.2bil.

The Star, 3/10/2013

E&O plans Klang Valley township

NEW GROWTH ENGINE: Penang-based developer in talks with Sime Darby to buy land in Sungai Buloh

Eastern & Oriental Bhd (E&O) is looking at a vital new growth engine by building its first township in the Klang Valley.The Penang-based developer is in talks with its major shareholder, Sime Darby Bhd, to buy 55ha of land in Sungai Buloh, Selangor.

The latter owns 32 per cent of E&O. The plot is part of the larger 341ha under Sime Darby’s Elmina West estate off the Guthrie Corridor Expressway.

Both parties yesterday sealed a memorandum of agreement to facilitate discussions and valuation on the land acquisition.

A firm sale and purchase agreement is expected by March next year, E&O told Bursa Malaysia yesterday.

The company has been busier in Penang with key projects such as Seri Tanjung Pinang, although it also owns tracts of land with smallscale projects in the Klang Valley.

It is also developing 85ha of land at Medini Central in Iskandar Malaysia, with an estimated gross development value of RM3.5 billion.

E&O is reportedly targeting to launch RM1.5 billion to RM2 billion of property projects a year from financial year ending March 31 2014 to 2016.

This will be increased to RM3 billion to RM4 billion worth of launches to achieve sustainable net profits of RM270 million to RM300 million from 2017 onwards.

If it materialises, the freehold Sungai Buloh land will be its maiden township project in the Klang Valley, the company said.

The project will be based entirely on a wellness theme, comprising both commercial real estate and lifestyle residential development.

“The development will offer E&O ample opportunity to deliver unique wellness products that meet the aspirational lifestyle needs of an increasingly discerning market,” it said.

Business times, 26/9/2013