EcoWorld International acquires prime site in Sydney popular with locals for AUD139 million project

Eco World International Berhad (EcoWorld International) has secured access to a prime development land situated 12 kilometres northwest of Sydney’s central business district with plans to develop an AUD139 million Gross Development Value (GDV) project there.

The project site is situated at 1-3 Lachlan Avenue, Macquarie Park, Sydney adjacent to Macquarie University in the Macquarie University Precinct. This locale is home to one of Australia’s top 10 universities and top two percent (2%) universities in the world that attracts thousands of international students annually. It is also strategically positioned within close proximity to the Macquarie Innovation Park District, Macquarie University Train Station and Macquarie Shopping Centre.

MIPD is Sydney’s second largest business district and one of the largest business and technology precincts in the Southern Hemisphere. It is also one of Sydney’s most important employment centres which hosts major global players across the pharmaceutical, technology, electronics and telecommunications industries like Fujitsu, Canon, 3M, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble and Johnson and Johnson, to name a few.

“We are delighted to be able to add the Macquarie Park site, which is situated in a fastgrowing location extremely popular with Sydney-siders, to our growing project portfolio in Australia. Our decision to focus on serving the needs of the domestic property market began with the acquisition of the Yarra One site in South Yarra, Melbourne. This was followed by our recent entry into the Heads of Agreement with Willmott Dixon to potentially acquire 12 projects in the UK. The announcement today is therefore in line with our overall strategy to localise our brand wherever we operate,” said Dato Teow Leong Seng, President and CEO of EcoWorld International.

At present there is an existing building located on the project site with 30 en-bloc apartment units. Under the Strata Schemes Development Act 2015 (Australia), 75% of unit owners in a strata scheme can agree to end their strata scheme, so the site can be redeveloped or sold.

EcoWorld International has entered into a call and put option agreement with owners of 25 of the apartment units to acquire these units by way of a collective sale. This represents approximately 84.2% of the strata scheme which enables EcoWorld International to proceed with the acquisition of all the apartment units through a strata renewal process under the Act.

The estimated purchase price to acquire the entire site is approximately AUD40 million and the proposed acquisition is expected to be completed by November 2018. EcoWorld International plans to develop 125 units of residential apartments with a small component of retail.

The total estimated GDV of the project is AUD139 million and it is targeted to be launched in the first half of 2019 and completed over 3 – 4 years from the date of launch.

Funding for the proposed acquisition of the Sydney project is expected to come from a combination of the proceeds of EcoWorld International’s recent IPO and bank borrowings / other debt instruments. 

Malaysian firms can bid for MRT Line 3

By SHAREN KAUR for NST Business- November 13, 2017

KUALA LUMPUR : The chief for Mass Rapid Transit Corp Sdn Bhd (MRT Corp) said that tenders for the third Klang Valley MRT (KVMRT) line is open to both local and foreign firms.

According to chief executive officer Datuk Seri Shahril Mokhtar, local civil infrastructure companies can bid for the turnkey contract by forming a consortium or joint ventures (JV) with foreign players who have the technical expertise and know how.

As for the financing proposal, Shahril said that the tenderer would act as a "match-maker" for MRT Corp.

"As a match-maker, they would be involved in getting the financing in place for the MRT Line 3 development. We strongly believe that this method of developing the MRT Line 3 will save a lot of public money," Shahril said here today.

Shahril had said that the turnkey financing model is aimed at attracting foreign companies who may provide better financing options for MRT3.

The development of the MRT Line 1 and MRT Line 2 were based on the PDP (project delivery partner) model to ensure the on-time delivery of the projects.

MRT Corp recently invited construction and infrastructure development firms to participate in the tender process to build the MRT Line 3 on a turnkey basis.

The MRT Corp tender announcement followed Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s Budget 2018 speech on October 27, where he said that the government will expedite the construction of MRT3 and expects it to be completed by 2025, earlier than the initial target of 2027.

According to the notice of tender, MRT Corp said the successful applicant will be responsible for the engineering, procurement, construction, testing and commissioning of the 40km MRT3 line, featuring 32km of twin-bored tunnels and 8km of elevated viaducts.

The successful tenderer is also expected to develop tunnels, viaducts, stations, depots, trackworks, rolling stock, signalling, power supply and other related structures.

In order to qualify and participate in the tender process, MRT Corp said prospective applicants must meet the minimum financial capacity of having a paid-up capital and a shareholder’s fund that is not less than RM5 billion.

As for the financing proposal, MRT Corp said it should include a minimum financing period of 30 years, with a drawdown period of up to 2028, while the margin of financing must not be less than 90 percent of the expected total project cost.

A tender briefing for the MRT Line 3 will be held this Wednesday.

Anzo is bidding for over RM300m worth of construction jobs

By SHAREN KAUR for NST Business - November 1, 2017

KUALA LUMPUR: Anzo Holdings Bhd is bidding for construction jobs worth over RM300 million from the public and private sectors to inch up its earnings, company officials said.

Paragon@KL Northgate

The aim is to sustain continued profitability via the company's organic growth strategy in the core construction business for the financial year 2018 and onwards, said an official.

The construction and timber product manufacturing group returned to the black in the last quarter of its fiscal year 2017 after 16 consecutive loss-making quarters.

For the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2017 Anzo recorded an unaudited net profit of RM1.27 million from a net loss of RM3.84 million posted in the same quarter a year ago.

For the 12-month period, Anzo’s net loss narrowed to RM4.63 million from RM10.85 million, on the back of increased revenue of RM12.26 million from RM6.11 million.

Anzo managing director Datuk Eddie Chai said previously that the company is on the right path to sustainable profitability.

For the first three months of its current financial year ending March 31, 2018, Anzo registered a net profit of RM741,000 versus a net loss of RM2.65 million in the same period last year.

"We are bidding for contracts to build high-rise buildings, both residential and commercial in Greater Kuala Lumpur and Melaka where there are a lot of construction activities.

"The contracts are worth each between RM100 million and RM150 million and we hope to secure them in the first half of next year," said the official.

This year Anzo has won close to RM1.4 billion worth of contracts in Selangor and Melaka through its subsidiary, Harvest Court Construction Sdn Bhd.

The biggest job is a Letter of Intent (LoI) for a contract worth RM1.21 billion for the Paragon@KL Northgate mixed development in Gombak district.

In Melaka, Harvest Court received a letter of intent (LoI) for a RM109.3 million contract to undertake Phase 2 of the Porto De Melaka Hotel and Resort development.

The LoI was from Tinta Anggun Engineering Sdn Bhd, which in October 2015 had awarded Harvest Court a RM153 million contract to construct 120 units of service suites and 24 spa villas under Phase 1 of the Porto De Melaka Hotel and Resort development.

Harvest Court also won a RM10.17 million job from KL Northgate Sdn Bhd to revitalise

Selayang Hot Spring near Selangor's Batu Caves.