Artist's impression of the future BPO towers on current PDC's site

The Penang Development Corporation building will be demolished to make way for a Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) Prime project.

The project will be undertaken by a joint-venture company, formed by the Penang Development Corporation (PDC) and Temasek, in which PDC will take up a 51% stake.

InvestPenang director Datuk Lee Kah Choon said PDC was in the process of relocating to Mayang Mall in Bayan Baru.

“The PDC and its 415 workers will be shifted to Mayang Mall by the end of the year,” he told a press conference yesterday.

The four-storey PDC building, located on a 2.7ha site in Bayan Baru, will be replaced by a proposed 29-storey and 25-storey BPO towers, which are being planned to accommodate retail outlets, recreational facilities and open spaces.

“Together with the other Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC)-status buildings such as Suntech Tower, One Precinct and Mayang Mall in Bayan Baru, the area will form a BPO hub.

“The BPO hub is projected to create 4,000 jobs in three years,” Lee said.

He added that PDC had the option of moving to the BPO Prime when it was completed.

Lee said the demand for BPO offices was strong, especially if the building was MSC-certified.

The BPO Prime will be going for MSC certification.

“The global outsourcing market, of which BPO services are part of, is projected to grow to US$625bil in 2017 from US$458bil presently,” Lee said.

On May 23 this year, the PDC signed a memorandum of understanding with Temasek to undertake the development of the BPO Prime and Penang International Technology Park (PITP) in Bayan Baru and Batu Kawan.

“Both projects will have a RM11.3bil gross development value.

“0nce completed, the BPO Prime will be managed by the Economic Development Innovations Singapore Pte Ltd,” Lee said.

The PITP project located on a 83ha or 206 acres will be completed in five to 10 years, according to Lee.

The PDC moved to its present location in Bayan Baru in 1993 from the Penang Skills Development Centre.

Source: StarProperty.my

Casa Residence, another high rise development along the ever bustling Jalan Song Ban Kheng in Bukit Mertajam. It is strategically located in the center of commercial district, and it is only 10 minutes drive from Penang bridge. A few well regarded primary and secondary schools are also within a short drive.

This development comprises 115 condo units with size ranging from 1,010 – 1,299 sq.ft. Each unit comes with 2 free car parking lots.

Property Project : Casa Residence
Location : Jalan Song Ban Kheng, Bukit Mertajam
Property Type : Condominium
Built-up Area: 1,010 – 1,299 sq.ft.
Total Units : 115
Land Tenure: Freehold
Indicative Price: RM 345,000 onwards
Maintenance Fee: RM0.18 psf.
Developer: Casa Kasturi Sdn. Bhd.

Location Map:

Contributed by reader (19/09/2017)

Ideal learning environment: Abdullah (second right) having a closer look at a model of the international school after the groundbreaking ceremony. Accompanying him are (from left) Leela, Teh, Ramasamy, Collin and Ong.

GEMS Education, the world’s largest kindergarten to secondary education group, will open a RM55mil international school in Bandar Tasek Mutiara in Simpang Ampat near Bukit Mertajam, Penang.

The Gems International School of Pearl City is a project undertaken by Gems Education and its local partner Maju Holdings Sdn Bhd via its subsidiary Gems Maju Sdn Bhd.

This is Gems Education’s first international school in Malaysia.

Gems Maju Sdn Bhd chief execu- tive officer Tom Collin said the school was scheduled to open in September 2015.

“It will have an initial intake of 300 pupils from kindergarten through to Year Nine under the tutelage of 30 education professionals,” he said at the groundbreaking ceremony which was performed by former prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

He said the school would cater to both local and international students from kindergarten to secondary education.

“We will offer a hybrid international and Malaysian curriculum including Bahasa Melayu, Islamic and Moral Studies, History, Art and Design, Music and Drama in a Malaysian context,” he said.

Collin said the company was also looking into building international schools in the Klang Valley, Johor Baru and in Sabah and Sarawak.

Present at the function were Deputy Chief Minister II Dr P. Ramasamy, Gems Maju Sdn Bhd chairman Datuk Alan Ong, Gems International School of Pearl City board of governors chairman Datuk Leela Mohd Ali, Tambun Indah managing director Teh Kiak Seng and Star Publications (M) Bhd executive director Tan Sri Kamal Hashim.

Source: StarProperty.my

This seminar is FREE to the public!

As part of GM Training Academy’s corporate social responsibility (CSR), the company will be organizing My First Home seminar in Penang. As a first time purchaser, normally you will have more questions than answers…..

1. Where to buy?
2. How to buy?
3. What is the process from buying to disbursement of my loan?
4. Am I eligible to borrow from the bank?
5. How much can I borrow?
6. I do not have down payment, can I still buy?
7. What type of bank packages is available?
8. How much is the legal fee?
9. I do not understand the terms in the Sales and Purchase agreement?
10. and many more

This is why the company is organizing the seminar and invites property experts in their related industry to share with you their experience from buying your first property to getting financing from the bank and understanding the legal aspects. This seminar is FREE to the public. Who should be attending?

• First Time Home buyers
• Real Estate Agents
• Anyone who wants to learn and help another person in need.

Date: 21st June 2014
Time: 2pm – 6pm
Venue: 5th Floor, YMCA, Penang.
Contact:  04-646 0636
Registration: SMS to 012-476 0519:  MYH_<Name><Contact><email>

* My First Home Seminar Registration *

Artist’s impression of Seri Tanjung Pinang phase two.

The Penang state government has endorsed Eastern & Oriental Bhd’s (E&O) masterplan for the second phase of its Seri Tanjung Pinang (STP) project.

In its filing with Bursa Malaysia, E&O said its subsidiary Tanjung Pinang Development Sdn Bhd was notified yesterday that its masterplan for STP phase two had been endorsed by the Penang State Planning Committee.

The property developer had earlier hoped to receive endorsement for the project by the fourth quarter of this year.

On April 10, the Department of Environment granted E&O an approval in principle for the detailed environmental impact assessment study and conceptual masterplan for the STP phase two project.

STP phase two will involve reclamation of 760 acres of man-made islands and 131 acres of the Gurney Drive foreshore, which will be handed over to the state government for infrastructure development.

The infrastructure development will be for a new expressway, a new Gurney Drive promenade, and a parallel linear park for public recreational purposes.

Reclamation work is to take three to five years, and the development will take up to 15 years.

Phase one of the STP project involved the reclamation of 239 acres and was completed in 2005. To date, about 2,500 housing units have been completed at STP.

Source: StarProperty.my