The long wait for the completion of a 1.3km-long road widening project between Federal Route One in Simpang Ampat and the traffic lights near the North-South Expressway’s (NSE) toll plaza at Batu Kawan, Penang, will be over soon.

Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the Public Works Department (PWD) was confident of completing the RM16mil Federal Government project by June.

He said the project, which began in June 2008, was originally scheduled for completion by December 2010.

He said although the PWD later extended the completion date to September last year, it still could not meet the deadline.

“The PWD said the delay was not caused by the project contractor but by PLUS, which delayed in giving its consent for the contractor to build a 70m-long bridge over the NSE alignment there.

“PLUS only gave the green light last December and so, JKR is now confident of completing the project by June,” he said after checking on the bridge’s construction on Thursday.

Also present was Penang JKR deputy director Mohd Hassan Harun and Bukit Tambun assemblyman Law Choo Kiang.

Lim said many residents had complained of bottle necks, especially near the mini roundabout outside the NSE’s Bukit Tambun toll plaza due to the project’s delay.

He said the project involved widening the two-lane stretch to four lanes.

Source: The Star

GEORGE TOWN: Ivory Properties Group Berhad (IPGB) has clarified that it won the bidding for the sale of the 41.5ha land in Bayan Mutiara through open tender.

Its chairman and group CEO Datuk Low Eng Hock said the company had participated in the tender called by the Penang Government, which closed on Dec 31, 2010.

It emerged successful in its bid at the price of RM240 per sq ft or RM1.072bil.

He said the state government, in awarding the tender to IPGB as the highest bidder, imposed an additional requirement of reducing the term of payment from the original eight to five years.

“This was agreed to by IPGB and all necessary announcements were lodged with Bursa Malaysia. The group had paid the deposit of RM22.1mil.

“The remainder will be paid according to the scheduled progress payment after IPGB’s shareholders’ approval at the extraordinary general meeting scheduled on March 5,” Low said in a press statement yesterday.

A controversy had erupted when Barisan Nasional Back-benchers Club vice-chairman Datuk Abdul Rahman Dahlan tweeted recently that the “super-prime land” had been sold for “pittance”, adding that the price was negotiated.

The RM240 per sq ft price tag was a lot cheaper than surrounding land which he claimed was priced at RM420 per sq ft.

On Friday, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng challenged Penang Umno chiefDatuk Zainal Abidin Osman and Abdul Rahman to retire from politics if they could not prove that the deal was not done through open tender.

Lim also offered to retire from politics if there is proof that the sale was not made through open tender.

Zainal Abidin later produced a document which he claimed otherwise.

Yesterday, Lim said he would explain the issue tomorrow with documents.

“We will see who will have to retire from politics,” he said after opening the True Moderation’ conference at a hotel here.

Source: The Star

GEORGE TOWN: Penang Barisan Nasional chief Datuk Zainal Abidin Osman has produced a document which he claims proves that the Bayan Mutiara land sale was not done via open tender.

He has asked Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng to keep his word and retire from politics.

At a press conference yesterday, Lim had offered to retire from politics if it could be proven that the Bayan Mutiara land sale was not done via open tender.

He had challenged Zainal Abidin and Kota Belud MP Datuk Abdul Rahman Dahlan to retreat from politics if they could not prove that the sale of the land was not done through open tender.

Zainal Abidin produced the document, which was an announcement by Ivory Properties Group Berhad to the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange on Nov 11 last year, at a press conference at Menara Umno here.

“On the Penang Development Corporation (PDC) website, it is stated that the closing date for the open tender of the Bayan Mutiara project was Dec 31, 2010.

“However, it is clearly stated in this document that Ivory only submitted an application to the PDC to buy and develop the land on March 3, 2011,” he said.

“Until today, the Chief Minister has not revealed how many had entered for the open tender, who evaluated the open tender, who is in the tender committee, and what is the tender process,” he said.

Abdul Rahman said Lim should reply to the questions and not resort to political mud-slinging.

“Lim must understand that it’s not just about the price but because of the documents Ivory submitted to Bursa Malaysia that stated the price of the land was derived after negotiations between the company, CMI (Chief Minister Incorporated) and PDC, which contradicts his claim that it was done via open tender,” he said.

Meanwhile, Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Donald Lim said Guan Eng should not use a valuation by the Finance Ministry in 2009 as an excuse in the controversial sale of the land.

“He must get a new valuation for the year the land is sold,” he said.

On Wednesday, Guan Eng had said that the RM200 per sq ft reserve price for the land was much higher than the value set by the ministry’s Valuation and Services Department Department in November 2009, which he claimed had put the price as “not even worth RM150.”

SOURCE: The Star

BUTTERWORTH: Batu Kawan, once a rural swampland of oil palm estates, is set to become the next Bayan Lepas, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said.

He said three major investments from Robert Bosch, Boon Siew Honda and VAT Manufacturing Malaysia totalling about RM10bil in Batu Kawan would have spillover effects on different sectors, including thousands of jobs for those living in the area.

“At the same time, Batu Kawan will also have the country’s first integrated, streamlined and symmetrically designed affordable housing scheme.

“We have engaged the world’s best in this field, Surbana International Consultants — the privatised building and development division of Singapore’s Housing and Development Board (HDB),” he said before performing the ground breaking for the RM2.7bil Bandar Cassia Affordable Housing Scheme yesterday.

On the state’s choice of the consultancy firm, Lim said the state’s investment arm Penang Development Corporation (PDC) did not want to copy or model its affordable houses after some of the world’s best designs but to appoint the best in the industry to help with the planning.

Lim reiterated that the housing project, which would be given out to local contractors via an open tender, would be ideal for the middle-income earners.

“We do not want our middle-income earners to live in boxes. That is why proper planning is vital so that they can live with pride and enjoy quality living through this scheme.

“This eco-friendly designed project, on an 80ha plot of land, will have about 12,000 medium-cost housing units, three football fields, a man-made river and recreation parks,” he said.

Lim said the freehold units, ranging from 800sq ft to 1,000sq ft, would be housed in high-rise buildings of between nine and 16 storeys. The units are priced at between RM72,500 and RM220,000 each with a free car parking lot.

He said Surbana was committed to oversee the project’s progress throughout the scheduled 10-year development period over five phases with the Phase 1 expected to be ready by 2014.

“The state government will undertake the maintenance and management of these housing units once completed.”

He said the various projects would ‘create’ a population of about 250,000 residents.

Source: The Star

AVENUE Properties Bhd has introduced a scheme for retail investors to buy interests in properties.

The company launched yesterday Avenue Hotel Property Interest Scheme, offering 10,500 property interests or units where 70 per cent are available for the public to buy at RM4,800 each.

Chief executive officer Richard Woo said the scheme will offer property interest or unit holders seven per cent returns per annum, for the first 14 years of its 35-year tenure.

The rate of return is higher in comparison to fixed deposits, the Employees Provident Fund and endowment policies, where the returns are two per cent to six per cent, but lower than investing in properties and bonds.

Unit holders will be investing in a 130-room four-storey boutique hotel on Jalan Raja Uda in Butterworth, Penang, and the returns will be paid annually.

Woo told reporters that the rate of return will be more than seven per cent after the 14th year onwards, as the market matures.

He said the property interest is not transferable and neither can it be disposed of by unit holders during the first 12 months from the date of take-up.

"We expect the property interests to be fully subscribed over the next three to three-and-half-years, generating some RM50 million for the company," Woo said.

The business hotel, which is being constructed for as much as RM30 million, will be completed by the first quarter of next year. It is part of a 24ha rehabilitation project being undertaken by Avenue Properties.

Other components of the project, which is estimated to have a gross development value of RM500 million to RM600 million, are condominiums, a mall, and shop offices.

Khong Yue Chen, Avenue Properties group director for marketing and communications, said it is expecting an average room occupancy rate of 60 per cent in the first year of operation, with average rate of RM280 per room a night.

She said the company will offer a collection of resorts and villas next for unit holders to invest in.

SOURCE: Business Times