By Sharen Kaur
sharen@nstp.com.my
Published in NST on December 7, 2012
THE chief of Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA) said Iskandar Malaysia will develop into a metropolis of international standing.
“To grow into a metropolis, you need the right ingredients and we have it all in Iskandar,” IRDA chief executive Datuk Ismail Ibrahim said after a media briefing here yesterday.
Cumulative investments in Iskandar have breached the RM100 billion mark and key players in the region like IRDA and Iskandar Investment Bhd are expecting a new wave of development next year, led by domestic interests and Singapore.
Iskandar, three times the size of Singapore, was launched in 2006. From then up to September 30 2012, cumulative investments had reached RM99.79 billion where 63 per cent was domestically-driven.
Thirty-seven per cent was foreign investments and from that amount, 42 per cent had come from Europe, 44 per cent from Asia including Japan and South Korea, and 14 per cent from the Middle East.
According to Ismail, there is rising interest from bigger Singapore companies that are looking to invest in Iskandar.
He said the Khazanah Nasional Bhd and Temasek Holdings Pte Ltd partnership to develop parcels of land in Iskandar has spurred interest among Singapore investors.
The two sovereign wealth funds plan to build RM3 billion worth of properties in Iskandar through their partnership called Pulau Indah Ventures Sdn Bhd.
Ismail said the project showed the confidence from Singapore, which would lead to more investments from the country and other global investors.
“Previously, we had small- and medium-sized companies from Singapore that were investing in Iskandar. Also, with improved bilateral trade between Malaysia and Singapore, we anticipate bigger companies to arrive here.
“We recently had Fastrack Autosports Pte Ltd of Singapore which said it wanted to build a RM3.5 billion motorsports city in Gerbang Nusajaya. All these are good for Iskandar,” Ismail said.
The 108ha motorsports city is a joint venture between UEM Land Bhd (a unit of UEM Land Holdings Bhd) and Fastrack, controlled by Singapore billionaire Peter Lim who has also indicated his interest to venture into real estate development in Iskandar.
Last year, Lim had announced a plan to develop a RM200 million healthcare project at Stulang Laut in Johor Baru.
“We expect the proposed high-speed bullet train from Kuala Lumpur and Singapore and other infrastructure developments here to further spur growth in Iskandar as we move forward,” Ismail said.
sharen@nstp.com.my
Published in NST on December 7, 2012
RM100b AND COUNTING: Key players expect a new wave of development next year
“To grow into a metropolis, you need the right ingredients and we have it all in Iskandar,” IRDA chief executive Datuk Ismail Ibrahim said after a media briefing here yesterday.
Cumulative investments in Iskandar have breached the RM100 billion mark and key players in the region like IRDA and Iskandar Investment Bhd are expecting a new wave of development next year, led by domestic interests and Singapore.
Iskandar, three times the size of Singapore, was launched in 2006. From then up to September 30 2012, cumulative investments had reached RM99.79 billion where 63 per cent was domestically-driven.
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According to Ismail, there is rising interest from bigger Singapore companies that are looking to invest in Iskandar.
He said the Khazanah Nasional Bhd and Temasek Holdings Pte Ltd partnership to develop parcels of land in Iskandar has spurred interest among Singapore investors.
The two sovereign wealth funds plan to build RM3 billion worth of properties in Iskandar through their partnership called Pulau Indah Ventures Sdn Bhd.
Ismail said the project showed the confidence from Singapore, which would lead to more investments from the country and other global investors.
“Previously, we had small- and medium-sized companies from Singapore that were investing in Iskandar. Also, with improved bilateral trade between Malaysia and Singapore, we anticipate bigger companies to arrive here.
“We recently had Fastrack Autosports Pte Ltd of Singapore which said it wanted to build a RM3.5 billion motorsports city in Gerbang Nusajaya. All these are good for Iskandar,” Ismail said.
The 108ha motorsports city is a joint venture between UEM Land Bhd (a unit of UEM Land Holdings Bhd) and Fastrack, controlled by Singapore billionaire Peter Lim who has also indicated his interest to venture into real estate development in Iskandar.
Last year, Lim had announced a plan to develop a RM200 million healthcare project at Stulang Laut in Johor Baru.
“We expect the proposed high-speed bullet train from Kuala Lumpur and Singapore and other infrastructure developments here to further spur growth in Iskandar as we move forward,” Ismail said.
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