Berjaya Land Berhard Vietnam seeks to scale down property projects in Vietnam
09-03-2013
Three weeks ago, Berjaya sent the petition to the local government for permission to adjust the design of the Financial Center scheme, Nguyen Hoai Nam told the Daily. The investor wants to scale down this project from five 48-floor towers with total floor space of some 600,000 square meters to two towers with 300,000 square meters, Nam said.
The Malaysian investor five years ago pledged to invest around US$930 million to develop the project on nearly seven hectares at the corner of Le Hong Phong and Ba Thang Hai streets in District 10.
The project was set to feature leasing office areas, a five-star hotel, serviced apartments and a shopping center.
The reduction is to increase investment efficiency, Nam explained, adding his firm cannot maintain the project’s scale as earlier planned given the tough conditions in the property market now.
The leasing office market is mired in troubles, with even downtown buildings struggling to find tenants, he noted. Such a situation has placed enormous pressure on large-scale real estate projects far from the city center, he said.
Berjaya has poured VND1 trillion into the project including VND60 billion for constructing a kindergarten in District 10, Nam told the Daily. He asserted that his company would carry out the center if its revised design is approved.
Besides, Berjaya is also waiting for approval to slow down the development pace of the Vietnam International University Township project (VIUT) in the city’s Hoc Mon District which initially had a cost of around US$3.5 billion.
Berjaya plans to turn the 900-hectare area in the city’s northwest into an international university township consisting of homes, a commercial center and office building. The investor has cleared about 200 hectares as part of the scheme and is asking for permission to make investment in just 150 hectares first.
Given the present gloomy realty market, developing the project all at once is a great challenge to the developer.
Berjaya has also withdrawn from the Nhon Trach new city center project in Dong Nai Province after completing the scheme’s zoning plan. Dong Nai Province’s authorities also wanted to take back the slow-moving project.
Berjaya has invested in 11 projects in Vietnam, including the Sheraton Hanoi Hotel, the InterContinential Hanoi Hotel, Long Beach Resort in Phu Quoc and a complex in Dong Nai Province’s Bien Hoa City.
