China's Greenland Group Acquires Land In Malaysia's Danga Bay For US$185.16 Million

JOHOR BAHARU (Johor, Malaysia), April 16 (Bernama) -- The Greenland Group, one of China's biggest state-owned companies, is making its first foray into Malaysia by acquiring prime waterfront land in Iskandar Malaysia for US$185.16 million (RM600 million). The property conglomerate signed a sale and purchase agreement with Johor-based Iskandar Waterfront Holdings Sdn Bhd (IWH) in Shanghai, China on Wednesday, for the approximately 5.584-hectare land in Danga Bay. IWH, in a statement here Wednesday said the site, located close to the Johor Baharu city centre, has been earmarked for a mixed integrated joint venture (JV) development with a gross development value (GDV) of US$679.25 million (RM2.2 billion). The JV development between IWH and the Greenland Group is set to be completed within five years. The Shanghai-based group is keen to expand its land bank in Johor and is finalising talks with IWH and associated companies for two or three more land acquisitions soon. Greenland, ranked 359 in the Fortune Global 500 company survey last year, has been on a buying spree in recent years, acquiring big real-estate projects in New York, Los Angeles, Sydney, London and South Korea. The company is the builder of the world's tallest residential tower at 131 floors in Wuhan in Hubei Province, China. It is also building another iconic 88-storey tower in Nanjing, making it the seventh tallest building in the world. Greenland said the investment offers good returns, while reaping the benefits of economic cooperation for the mutual benefit of the people. IWH plans to leverage on Greenland's forte in mixed commercial development, including high-end hotels and residential towers, to help transform Danga Bay in Malaysia's southern state Johor into an integrated international waterfront city. "We believe the Greenland Group will pave the way for more China state-owned companies to invest in outstanding property projects in Iskandar Malaysia and our extensive waterfront landbank in Johor Bahru city," said IWH. IWH, a public-private partnership involving the state and federal governments and local investors, is the master developer of some 1,620 hectares of waterfront land on the eastern and western sides of the Johor Causeway. The centerpiece of this development is Danga Bay, a burgeoning new growth Centre within Flagship "A" of Iskandar Malaysia, which is being transformed into Malaysia's first integrated waterfront city. To date 16 local and foreign companies have committed investments to develop properties in joint-venture with IWH with a cumulative GDV of RM125 billion. At least four other major China developers are also negotiating with IWH for integrated mixed property developments featuring exclusive waterfront properties here. Iskandar Malaysia is the main southern development corridor in Malaysia's Johor. --BERNAMA