KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 15): The Penang government has proposed to undertake four road infrastructure projects worth up to a combined RM8 billion to reduce traffic congestion in the state. The move is deemed crucial to manage transportation needs of an expanding population there amid higher tourist arrivals, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said here on Monday at a media briefing.

According to the pre-qualification exercise document given out during the briefing, the Penang government plans to build a 6.5km undersea tunnel connecting Butterworth on the mainland and Gurney Drive, from which a 4.2km bypass would be constructed linking it to the Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu Expressway.

The plan will also see the construction of a 4.6km bypass from Bandar Baru Air Itam to the Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu Expressway, apart from a 12km paired road to the existing coastal road linking Tanjung Bungah and Teluk Bahang.

It is also the state government's intention to establish a light-rail-transit network along the proposed alignment, according to the document.

Lim said these projects represent a long-term plan for Penang as its existing road network would be insufficient to accommodate traffic volume in the near future. He said the proposed infrastructures would reduce the congestion along the tourism belt along Batu Ferringhi, besides residential areas such as Paya Terubong and the heritage sites within George Town.

Penang has a population of 1.52 million, still growing – the state is expected to house two million by 2020, according to Lim.

"This is our vision and we hope the Federal Government will participate," Lim said at the media briefing.

He did not specify the cost for each project, but only indicating that the total cost would range between RM5 billion and RM8 billion.

Lim said these public-private partnership projects would be undertaken via open tenders involving domestic and foreign construction companies. He said the state government would finance these projects via land swaps or toll collections.

Lim said the pre-qualification exercise for bidders would begin tomorrow and letter of awards would be issued to winners by September 2012 based on the best prices offered. He said the state may award all four projects to a single construction company or one project each to four winning bidders.

Construction work, which will take three years to complete, is anticipated to start in 2015 following feasibility studies.

The chief minister also indicated that while he is not in favour of elevated transportation structures which could adversely affect heritage buildings in the state; he was still "willing to consider other views" on such proposals.

The four proposed infrastructure projects coincide with the state government's plans to build more affordable homes in the state. Lim was quoted as saying over the weekend that the state authorities are setting aside RM500 milllion, from the sale of a piece of 41.5ha government-owned prime land along the Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu Expressway, to finance the construction of affordable houses in the state.

Lim had indicated that 81ha in Batu Kawan had been identified for the affordable home initiative which includes about 15,000 residential units worth between RM72,000 and RM220,000 each.

SOURCE: The Edge Property

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 14 — The Penang government today announced an ambitious RM8 billion plan to construct four major road and tunnel projects that aim to reduce traffic congestion in the state.

Touting it as the state government’s biggest infrastructure exercise to date, Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the projects — all of which will be conducted via open tender — will also allow greater access between the island and the mainland.

The proposed projects are a third (tunnel) link connecting Gurney Drive to Seberang Perai North District, a by-pass connecting Gurney Drive to the Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu expressway, a link between Bandar Baru Air Itam to the same expressway, as well as a paired road to the existing coastal road from Tanjung Bungah to Teluk Bahang.

“We need a northern link connecting Gurney Drive to Butterworth, to make it easier for people in the mainland to come to the island, and this will ease up congestion in addition to the two Penang bridges.

“The estimated costs for this project will be between RM5 [and] RM8 billion and expected to be completed by 2020,” Lim told reporters here.

The Penang CM said the state government will not provide any payments for the projects, and that the costs incurred will be recovered through a “competitive land swap” deals with prospective companies.

Lim said his administration will provide a preliminary financial proposal that will include the planned financing structure as well as bids to recover costs.

“The proposed land swap will involve the best prime land in Penang, which is in Gurney… the price of land in Penang will increase over the next few years, and this will benefit the companies who will undertake the road and tunnel projects.”

He also said his administration was also looking at the possibility of conducting a toll system for the projects once they are completed, but added this was provisional and would depend on what interested companies had to offer.

A pre-qualification exercise briefing for prospective companies will be held in Penang on November 29. Application and questionnaire pro-forma forms will be given out then and bidders must submit the forms by 12pm, January 2012.

Works will tentatively begin sometime in 2015.

Source: The Malaysian Insider

PETALING JAYA: Dijaya Corp Bhd and Ivory Properties Group Bhd shares were up after the companies announced a tie-up for a mixed-property project with a gross development value of RM10bil in Bayan Mutiara, Penang.

Dijaya rose 3.6%, or 5 sen, to RM1.44 while its warrants advanced 6.5%, or 3 sen, to 49 sen. Ivory Properties added 7%, or 7 sen, to RM1.07.

Dubbed Penang World City, the project will be undertaken by joint-venture vehicle Tropicana Ivory Sdn Bhd (TISB), which is 49% owned by Dijaya and 51% by Ivory Properties. TISB was set up on Oct 14.

Penang World City will be built on a 102.56 acre site, of which 35 acres is to be reclaimed. It will comprise residential units, a shopping mall, office suites, office towers, a hotel, retail spaces and an open mall with a boulevard.

The land is being bought for RM1.08bil from state-owned Penang Development Corp.

Bayan Mutiara is a new development hub in the eastern part of the Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu Expressway and is in the vicinity of Sungai Nibong.

Ivory Properties has proposed to finance the project via a renounceable rights issue of 186,000,000 new ordinary shares of 50 sen each as well as 186,000,000 new free detachable warrants.

Dijaya, meanwhile, will extend financial assistance to TISB in the form of shareholder advances, guarantee, indemnity or collateral of up to RM525.4mil, or 49% of the total consideration of the development land.

Analysts contacted by StarBiz have a positive view of the project, citing its prime location as a major plus factor.

“Land in Penang is scarce and the outlook for housing in the Bayan Mutiara area is booming,” an analyst said.

“It is not easy to get land in Penang for that price. Property developers prefer Johor Baru because land is much cheaper there.”

Another local bank-backed analyst said although he liked the land, he considered it pricey. At RM240 per sq ft, it was comparably higher than IJM Land Bhd’s land further north of the island that was purchased at RM50 per sq ft. IJM Land has a 150.24-acre mixed-development called Light Waterfront Penang.

The analyst also said the upside for Ivory Properties’ stock would be capped at around 30% as its share base would be diluted by two to three times following the rights issue.

He added that the choice of office towers in the development mix was surprising as the demand for office space in Penang was tepid.

Nonetheless, he said the project was still at its early stage and was subject to change.

“We haven’t seen a detailed breakdown of the development components yet but the residential portion is likely to be larger,” he said.

Penang World City is scheduled to be completed in eight years. Work on the first phase is scheduled to begin at the end of next year.

SOURCE: The Star

Residensi Teluk Bahang, a residential development located near to the upcoming Eco Theme Park within the popular travel destination of Teluk Bahang, Penang. It comprises 12 semi-detached and 4 bungalow houses.

Location : Teluk Bahang, Penang
Property Type : 2-storey Semi-detached & bungalow houses
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Marketing Agent : Wern Properties Sdn.  Bhd.
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GEORGE TOWN (Nov 13, 2011): The recently unveiled ‘Penang World City’ planned on reclaimed land south of the Penang Bridge with an estimated gross development value of RM10 billion is subject to Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).

In asserting this, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng also clarified that the beach along the land will come under the state while the project site is taken over by developer Ivory Properties Group Bhd.

Lim, who officiated at the signing ceremony for the purchase and development of the land between the Penang government and Ivory last Friday, was responding to a question on public concerns following a spate of reclamation projects in the state.

“The EIA must be complied with, there will be no exemption,” he said, commenting on reports that the hydroflow in the seas around Penang may be affected by the reclamations.

He also said that the units on the reclaimed land will be offered on freehold terms, but the beach along the land will be maintained under the state.

The development is to be undertaken in a joint venture between Ivory and Dijaya Corporation Bhd.

The two public listed companies formed Tropicana Ivory Sdn Bhd (TISB), with Ivory (through wholly-owned subsidiary Ivory Utilities Sdn Bhd) taking a 51% stake and Dijaya (through wholly-owned Tropicana Development (Penang) Sdn Bhd) holding the remaining 49%, for this project.

The project covers a land size of 41.5ha, of which 27.3ha is existing reclaimed land and 14.2ha has yet to be reclaimed. The cost for the remaining reclamation will be borne fully by Ivory.

The new project is planned to include luxury condominiums, medium-rise condominiums, business suites, services residences, iconic office block, waterfront entertainment hub, commercial and retail spaces, waterfront villas and medical facilities.

The agreement was signed by PDC general manager Datuk Rosli Jaffar, Penang State Economic Planning Unit deputy director (macro) Hafidzah Hassan who represented CMI, and Ivory chairman and Group CEO Datuk Low Eng Hock

Also present was Ivory deputy chairman and executive director Datuk Seri Nazir Ariff.

The land known as Bayan Mutiara had been earmarked by the previous Barisan Nasional (BN) state government for a “Mini Putrajaya” government administrative centre, but plans for these were deferred.

The Pakatan Rakyat state government, through its Chief Minister of Penang Incorporated (CMI), then last year entrusted the PDC to spearhead a new development project there.

PDC arranged an open tender through a Request for Proposal (RFP) exercise which ended on Dec 31, 2010. Three companies were short-listed.

Ivory was eventually awarded the tender with a price offering to pay RM240 per sq ft over five years to the state.

Lim said that the sale of land will enable the Penang government to generate revenue of approximately RM1.07 billion.

He stressed that contribution from the proceeds would be channelled towards the setting up of a RM500 million ‘Affordable Quality Homes Fund’ in the state.

“Among others, one of the locations identified for affordable quality housing is in Batu Kawan where 200 acres (81ha) has been earmarked to build about 15,000 units with prices ranging between RM 72,000 and RM 220,000,” he said.

Source: TheSunDaily