KUALA LUMPUR: "Di mana ada semut, di situ ada gula", that would probably be the best Malay proverb to describe the return of "Sugar King" Tan Sri Robert Kuok to Johor, and Iskandar Malaysia, to be exact.
Not wanting to miss out the "sweet" opportunities offered at the southern economic region, the Johor-born Kuok has chosen Nusajaya as his new investment destination.
Through the Kuok Brothers Group, he has just bought 5.058 hectares of land for RM334 per sq foot from UEM Land, in Puteri Harbour, one of the key landmarks at Nusajaya.
That the billionaire is prepared to pay such a high price tends to make Puteri Harbour a sweet investment for him with even sweeter returns in time to come.
Kuok's return will definitely help his fellow Johoreans with a positive spillover effect from job openings and business opportunities from the mixture of high-rise residential, as well as, retail and commercial units totaling, RM1 billion in gross development value.
Kuok developed the land via Southern Marina Development Sdn Bhd, a 70:30 joint venture company between Kuok Brothers Group and Khazanah Nasional Bhd.
The Kuoks had set up Malayan Sugar Manufacturing Company in 1958 and then saw their first sugar cane plantation through Perlis Plantations six years after.
They sold Malayan Sugar Manufacturing to Felda in 2009 before acquiring an Australian sugar company later.
Before making his own way to Iskandar, Kuok had earlier alerted his partner, Australian billionaire, Lang Walker, to the potential of Iskandar Malaysia.
The Malaysian is a partner in Walker's US$1.4 billion Collins Square redevelopment project in Melbourne, Australia.
With Kuok’s help, Walker identified two areas in Johor Baru – Lido Beach and Senibong Cove, but in the end, he chose the latter.
For now, this is Walker's biggest bet outside Australia where work is underway on 7,000 units of dwellings to be built on 84 hectares of waterfront land over 10 years.
The US$1.3 billion project, developed on a joint venture basis, with Iskandar Waterfront Sdn Bhd includes condominiums, apartments, cluster homes, semi-detached bungalows and terraced houses.
MIDF Research says that Kuoks' participation in Puteri Harbour would also accelerate the development momentum of Puteri Habour, joining Liberty Bridge, Encorp and Tiong Nam Logistic.
Kuok's project will located with other projects within Nusajaya like D'Estuary, Residential North and Residential.
Kenanga Research, meanwhile, says that the wealth experience of the Kuok Brothers, particularly given the Shangri-la Group of hotels branding, will further strengthen Puteri Harbour's potential.
It is also heartened that such a transaction is taking place during the pre-General Election period, implying strength to the overall Iskandar Malaysia story, where Nusajaya is located in the hotly-contested Gelang Patah Parliamentary constituency.
"We are positive but not surprised," it said.
HwangDBS Vickers Research also believed that Kuok's participation would help expedite the overall development in Puteri Harbour with the participation of other established property developers.
"We are pleasantly surprised as we understand that UEM Land had previously only considered high-rise development on those prime Puteri Harbour land on its own," the research house said. -- BERNAMA
http://www.nst.com.my/latest/tan-sri-robert-kuok-makes-sweet-return-to-iskandar-malaysia-1.262389#ixzz2RHusgyJ8
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