SDB still open to selling Hotel Maya

(L-R): Selangor Dredging Bhd (SDB) group general manager Loong Ching Hong, managing director Teh Lip Kim and chairman Eddy Chieng Ing Huong after the company’s shareholders meeting in Kuala Lumpur yesterday. NST picture byROSELA ISMAIL

By Sharen Kaur - Published in NST Property, August 28, 2019

KUALA LUMPUR: Selangor Dredging Bhd (SDB) says it is still open to selling its five-star Hotel Maya here provided it receives a good offer.

"As a developer, if there is a very attractive offer, then we will look at it. But right now nobody is buying (hotels). What we are doing is we are refurbishing the hotel rooms. It is not a major refurbishment where we have to shut down the hotel. We are refurbishing the rooms gradually," said SDB managing director Teh Lip Kim.

Hotel Maya, which has 205 rooms ranging from studios, junior suites, deluxe suites and executive suites, begun refurbishing works in August last year. It is due to be completed by the last quarter of 2020.

So far, 57 rooms have been refurbished and 20 more are due to be refurbished this month.

Hotel Maya is located a stone's throw away from Wisma Selangor Dredging, which the company sold for RM480 million in cash in 2017, to Golden Eagle Realty Sdn Bhd, which is controlled by businessman Tan Sri Koo Yuen Kim.

Talks on SDB putting up the hotel for sale goes way back to 2014. The price started at RM300 million and the last reported price was an estimated RM230 million.

The hotel's net book value as at March 31 2016, was RM150 million.

Teh said the last major refurbishment for Hotel Maya was completed 10 years ago.

She was speaking to the New Straits Times after the company's shareholders' meeting here.


Built in 1996, Hotel Maya underwent an extensive refurbishment to start its new life as Malaysia’s first five-star boutique urban resort in Kuala Lumpur city centre.

The hotel first opened as Radisson Plaza and subsequently operated as Park Place.

The owners then decided to take over the management from the international operators and renamed it Grand Maya Hotel. It changed name to Hotel Maya after a RM45 million renovation.

Meanwhile, Teh said the local property market remains challenging and the company was focusing on reducing its inventories.

SDB's unsold inventory is valued at RM111 million while unbilled sales is RM241.9 million.

"We are looking to sell our current stock. We have sold 95% to 97%," said Teh.

For future developments, SDB is looking at launching properties below RM700,000.

"We are still studying which areas to go into," said Teh.

On the group's mining business held via its associate company, Fortress Minerals Ltd, Teh said there are plans to increase its monthly output to 30,000 tonnes for its iron ore plant in Bukit Besi Terengganu, from the current 20,000 tonnes.

Teh said SDB is positive about the mining segment, adding that the average selling price for FE65 iron ore is about US$90 a tonne currently.

SDB general manager Loong Ching Hong said the group's cost of production per tonne for its mining
division amounts to US$40, translating into a profit margin of 60-80 per cent.

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