Hong Kong-listed Country Garden Holdings and Johor state investment arm Kumpulan Prasarana Rakyat Johor (KPRJ) have drawn up plans for a massive reclamation project to build luxury homes close to Pendas in southern Johor near Singapore. The development could sit on a land area of “a few thousand acres”, which may make it one of Iskandar Malaysia’s single largest projects, media reports said.
Dubbed Forest City, it remains unclear how much Country Garden is pumping into the project. But going by its size, it may dwarf the Chinese firm’s first project in Danga Bay that covers 50 acres, for which it paid RM900 million.
As at June 2013, Country Garden is said to have cash and bank deposits amounting to 21.51 billion yuan. Sources said that the reclamation project is likely the largest of its kind in the country, and the parties embarking on it would need to have deep pockets.
KPRJ, on the other hand, is the state government’s investment arm. It owns 30 percent in Iskandar Waterfront Holdings (IWH), which in turn has 1,619ha of land in Iskandar Malaysia.
Located close to the Malaysia-Singapore Second Link, the latest project is expected to become a brand new tourism hub.
Earlier reports have indicated that the Johor government may also consider making this Malaysia’s biggest duty-free zone, leveraging on its proximity to Singapore.
The location is also close to Singapore tycoon Peter Lim’s multi-billion-ringgit Motorsports city project, which will include a Formula One-compliant racing test track as well as showrooms, garages and entertainment retailers on 109ha.
This news highlights the growing interest among mainland Chinese developers in Iskandar. The Chinese already have a powerful presence within the southern region.
Besides Country Garden, developer Guangzhou R&F Properties secured a record-breaking deal when it paid RM4.5 billion or RM891 psf to the Sultan of Johor for 47ha of land within the vicinity of the old Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Complex.
Sources said there are at least another three Chinese developers in talks to acquire land in Iskandar.
Meanwhile, the sale of reclaimed land appears to be becoming a trend in Johor. Prior to this, IWH had sold a 28.33ha man-made island in Danga Bay to Temasek Holdings and CapitaLand for RM800 million, while the land Guangzhou R&F bought is partly reclaimed.
Farah Wahida, Editor of PropertyGuru Malaysia, wrote this story. To contact her about this or other stories email farahwahida@propertyguru.com.my
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