Delayed Halong Star got financial support
10-07-2012
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Dubai-based Limitless World Vietnam, a partner in the joint venture to develop the $550 million Halong Star hotel complex, last week received financial support from HDBank.
Under the deal, HDBank will arrange financial resources for the project’s development phase by phase. Limitless World Vietnam will cooperate with HDBank to introduceg its services and products to their partners and customers.
Vuong Duc Lanh, chairman of Viet My-Halong Company - the domestic partner in the joint venture, said it would be a strong factor to push the project’s development forward. The deal will also see Limitless World Vietnam use HDBank services for all its projects in Vietnam.
Tran Hoai Nam, deputy general director of HDBank, said that through this deal HDBank expected to seal cooperation between the two sides, fully exploring the potential advantages of the relationship.
The developer received the seventh amended investment certificate at the beginning of this year, which will help kick-off the project after a four year delay. According to the Quang Ninh People’s Committee, the project’s schedule was extended until 2015, four years later than its previous certificate.
The Halong Star project got underway in 2007 as a joint venture between Limitless, an affiliate of Dubai World, Viet-My Ha Long Joint Stock Company and the International Property Investment Partners LLC.
It had initial investment capital of $220 million and ground-breaking took place in 2008. The total registered investment capital then was increased to $550 million in 2009 and the third partner the International Property Investment Partners LLC transferred its minor stake to the Vietnamese partner.
However, in 2009, Dubai World was burnt by the global crisis and it had to halt all projects worldwide to restructure its $26 billion debt that mostly affected its property affiliates, Nakheel and Limitless. In 2010, Limitless announced that it had resolved all financial difficulties and was continuing the project. However, the company had to apply for an amended investment certificate due to the three year delay.
Halong Star is a high-end and low density development near world heritage site Halong Bay.
It will comprise a 250-room, five-star hotel with a 500-seat conference centre, a 100-room luxury boutique hotel, more than 230 villas, and hundreds of townhouses and apartments for up to 4,000 residents.
According to the new timeline, villas and semi-detached houses and a four-star hotel will be finished in 2014, while others such as a five and six-star hotel, clubs and multi-function facilities will be finished in 2015.
