CapitaLand Development (CLD), the development arm of CapitaLand Group, has been awarded two prime residential sites in China, one each in the cities of Wuhan and Chengdu, at a total price of RMB3.49 billion (about S$748 million).
CLD plans to build 1,581 quality homes catering to first-time home buyers and upgraders on these sites. The construction of both projects will begin this year.
The Wuhan site is located in the central business district (CBD), at the intersection of Fazhan Avenue and Huaihai Road in Qiaokou District. Clinched at RMB2.31 billion (about S$495 million), it measures 45,709 square metres (sq m) in site area with a gross floor area (GFA) of 146,000 sq m.
The Chengdu site is located in Chenghua District, next to the middle ring road of Northeast Chengdu. Secured at a price bid of RMB1.18 billion (about S$253 million), the site covers an area of 29,382 sq m with a GFA of 73,453 sq m.
“China is one of three core markets for CLD, and we hold a long-term view of our business in the country. We are optimistic that the decisive moves taken by the authorities to reduce speculation will promote the healthy and sustained development of China’s housing market in the long term,” said Jason Leow, CEO of CLD.
“We are further encouraged by the Chinese government’s recent pledge on policy easing, which is expected to set China’s real estate sector on the path to recovery. CLD stands ready to capitalise on attractive opportunities that have emerged, as seen in the two prime residential sites in Wuhan and Chengdu that we have acquired,” he added.
The newly acquired sites in Chengdu and Wuhan will boost CLD’s pipeline of residential units under development in China to 19,139 units. Besides residential projects, CLD has been ramping up its investments in business parks and industrial properties in tandem with the global rise of the digital economy and China’s economic transformation.
Currently in Chengdu, CLD is developing a 22,000-sq m industrial site with a commercial component. In Suzhou, CLD is developing a 220,000-sq m business park in Suzhou New District, in partnership with Mitsubishi Estate Co., Ltd. CLD also has ongoing development activities in multi-phase large-scale projects including the China-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City, Datansha Island Urban Renewal Project in Guangzhou and La Botanica in Xi’an.- BusinessNewsAsia.com