UEM Land: Singapore's new resorts a boon to Nusajaya

By Sharen Kaur
Published in NST on Feb 26 2010

THE opening of Singapore's two casino resorts is expected to accelerate growth at Nusajaya, with 2012 targeted as the "tipping point" for the Johor project, said UEM Land Holdings Bhd chief.


Managing director and chief executive officer Wan Abdullah Wan Ibrahim said Resorts World Sentosa and Marina Bay Sands will help boost the number of visitors to Nusajaya's own indoor theme park and Legoland, placing Johor on the world map.

"Visitors to the two resorts are not going to gamble 24/7 (24 hours a day, seven days a week). They will visit Universal Studio and we expect them to come here as we are building Legoland and an indoor theme park. We are happy to see the (Singapore) casinos ready," Wan Abdullah told Business Times after the company's shareholders' meeting in Petaling Jaya, Selangor, yesterday.

"For us, anything good that comes up in Singapore will further enhance developments at Nusajaya. Three years ago Nusajaya was a dream, concept and plan. Today it is a reality," he added.

He expects a new wave of development to hit Nusajaya in 2012 as its current on-going projects would have reached their peak.

Among the projects due to complete in 2012 are the coastal highway linking Johor Baru, quarters for state government staff and federal government agency complexes at Kota Iskandar, Legoland, as well as an indoor theme park at Puteri Harbour.

Others include the 70-bed hospital by Columbia Asia Group, UK's Newcastle University of Medicine, Marlboro College Malaysia, a British independent co-educational boarding school for children between 13 and 18 years old, and the Sri KDU Smart School.

UEM Land is the developer of Nusajaya's main features such as the state administration complexes, Puteri Harbour, the Southern Industrial and Logistics Cluster (SILC), a healthpark and residences.

Wan Abdullah said there will be a good mix of new medium, high-end and luxury homes in Nusajaya, and the entry of international bio-technology companies in SILC going forward.

UEM Land, 77.14 per cent-controlled by UEM Group Bhd, expects to do better this year, attributed by its existing products and the completion of the current developments, Wan Abdullah said.

-ENDS-