Construction in Brief
CAMBODIA:
CONSTRUCTION INVESTMENT SURGES IN FIRST QUARTER
Investment in Cambodia’s construction sector reached US$851 million in the first three months of 2014, up 311% compared to the same period last year, official figures showed in May. From January to March, the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction provided licenses to 50 construction projects, up 39% from 36 projects over the same period in 2013. Construction projects included condominiums, residential units, commercial buildings, hotels, and factories. The top 5 countries and regions investing in the country’s real estate and construction sectors are South Korea, China, Britain, Thailand, and Russia. Construction is one of the four main drivers of the Cambodian economy. The sector attracted investments of US$2.77 billion over all of 2013. A spokesman for the Land Management Ministry told Xinhua that the growth was attributable to the country’s economic and political stability and favorable business climate.
PHNOM PENH:
SATELLITE CITY PREPARATION TO BE COMPLETE THIS YEAR
Preparation for the land on which the Chroy Changvar satellite city will be built – including pumping sand and filling in lakes and marshes – will be finished in the fourth quarter of 2014, sources associated with the Overseas Cambodian Investment Company (OCIC) told the Phnom Penh Post. The satellite city, which has already received US$1.6 billion in investment, will cover an area of 387 hectares. OCIC Project Manager Touch Samnang told the paper that 80% of the sand required to lay the groundwork for the satellite city had already been pumped into place, and that the OCIC planned to complete the remaining pumping work by October. Municipal authorities were working to resolve ongoing issues related to compensation and the provision of housing, as well as making market stalls available through the means of a lottery. But he added that it could take more than 20 years for the project to be completely finished. Infrastructure projects associated with the development would include a 6-kilometer main road and a new bridge to complement the Chroy Changvar Bridge. It would connect the satellite city with National Road 5.
PHNOM PENH:
PLATINUM BAY CONDO DEVELOPMENT AIMS FOR COMPLETION IN 2017
A 32-story condominium complex in Phnom Penh’s BKK1 district called Platinum Bay is slated to be finished in 2017, with nine floors already built. The complex will have 170 units, with the first and second floors being devoted to parking space while the third floor will feature a gym, steam room, sauna and swimming pool, Marketing Officer Taing Sina told the Phnom Penh Post. Prices for the condos will range from US$1,500 to US$1,700 per square meter and two- and three-bedroom units are available. Platinum Bay is located near the high-profile De Castle Royal condo complex in a part of town that property experts say has the greatest potential in the Cambodian capital right now. Because of the prime location, many observers say developments like Platinum Bay should be successful, although many Cambodians still prefer living in flats or villas, although those who have lived abroad are more likely to buy condos due to the modern conveniences they offer.
MYANMAR:
MYANMAR PRESIDENT ORDERS REPAIRS TO ‘DEATH HIGHWAY’
President Thein Sein has ordered repairs and upgrades for the road linking Yangon with the new capital Naypyidaw, which is popularly called “death highway” due to the number of car accidents and an overall poor safety record. The 366-mile concrete road, which continues from Naypyidaw north to Mandalay, was completed in 2009 after being hastily ordered by the country’s former military regime. The road has seen a high incidence of crashes. Police records show that from January to May 14 this year, 80 people died and more than 350 people were injured on the thoroughfare, according to the Irrawaddy Times. The improvements called for include an upgrade of bridges along the road, expansion of the highway from four lanes and quick implementation of repair works,” the New Light of Myanmar reported, adding that work would be focused on a section making up 6% of the road’s length, which has been identified as the priority by Japan’s international aid agency, JICA. Another 19% has been identified as needing maintenance and the remaining 75% is in good condition, JICA found. The cost of the repair work would be about US$1 million and USAID will provide some technical assistance on the project.
VIETNAM:
HOUSING DEVELOPER TO BUILD SATELLITE TOWNS
Nam Long Investment Corp., Vietnam’s biggest affordable housing developer, plans to move to building satellite towns, which are growing in popularity as rising incomes in Southeast Asia feed demand for suburban-style living, according to Bloomberg. Nam Long is targeting a 10-fold increase in its market capitalization to US$1 billion by 2020, by developing suburban-style communities on its land, including in the province of Long An, a gateway to the country’s rice-growing Mekong Delta. Strong demand for affordable housing in Vietnam as the country urbanizes has helped overcome a “challenging” national property market in recent years, the International Finance Corp.said in February. Nam Long wants to reduce the percentage of overall revenue generated by its affordable housing business to one-third by 2019 from about 90% now, according to Chief Executive Nguyen Vinh Tran. Chad Ovel of Mekong Capital told Bloomberg that the company feels the time is right to move toward becoming an integrated company and developer of satellite cities.
INDONESIA:
WORLD’S BIGGEST GEOTHERMAL POWER PLANT SET FOR INDONESIA
Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s largest economy, will be home in several years to the world’s biggest geothermal power plant, the long-delayed US$1.6-billion Sarulla project. The country is home to the world’s largest geothermal resources and is facing growth in power demand of more than 7% annually. But the sector has had a hard time attracting investment due to regulations and problems with financing. While the government had hoped to derive 12% of its energy mix from geothermal power by 2025, many say that is unrealistic. The 330-megawatt project is envisioned to provide clean power to an Indonesian grid now dominated by fossil-fuel energy. Sarulla is expected to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 1.3 million tons a year when completed in 2018.
LAOS:
ROAD CONSTRUCTION BEGINS IN XAYABURI PROVINCE
Construction has begun on new roads to link the northern parts of Laos and Thailand through Xayaburi, according to the Vientiane Times, which aims to facilitate trade, logistics and tourism between the two countries. Project Manager Buakham Vannaly told the paper that the road link would particularly benefit the transportation of crops to Thailand and the flow of tourists from the northern parts of Thailand to the northern parts of Laos such as Luang Prabang. Both countries reached an agreement on the project funding in May and Sino-Thai Engineering and Construction will head the project. Construction of the five connected roads is expected to last around 30 months. The project is being funded by the Thai government at a cost of almost US$43 million. 80% is in the form of a 30-year loan to the Lao government and the rest is development aid.
VIETNAM:
VIETNAM SETS GREEN BUILDING TARGETS
By 2020, Vietnam wants one-third of its publicly funded new and renovated buildings to be “green,” environmentally sustainable and energy efficient. In addition, the government aims for 10% of structures built with private funds to qualify as green. At a May workshop in Hanoi, Pham Ngoc Dang, President of the Green Building Council Vietnam and the Vietnamese Association of Construction Engineering and Environment, said that green building was “an integral part of urban and rural sustainable development,” and contributed to the country’s sustainable development. Vietnam’s national strategy framework for developing green buildings covers nine major issues of green buildings, including environmentally sustainable building site planning and design, efficient use of energy, water and materials, air quality inside the building and waste minimization. Since climate conditions can vary considerable in different regions of the country, several architectural techniques were discussed, including passive design solutions like covering openings to protect the building from solar heat, changing the shape of the building and laying out interior spaces according to heating requirements.
PHILIPPINES:
FIRST-QUARTER CONSTRUCTION JUMPS IN PHILIPPINES
More construction activity was seen in the first quarter compared to a year ago as the number of approved building permits climbed more than 20% compared to the same period in 2013, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said. Preliminary results of the PSA’s construction statistics for the January-to-March period showed that the total number of new construction projects from approved building permits reached 29,468, up 20.8% from the 24,400 in the first three months of last year. Residential building projects accounted for the bulk of approved permits for the first quarter. They grew 17.1% to 20,498 from 17,502 during the same period in 2013. Approved building permits for non-residential constructions jumped by 15.2% to 3,496 as of the end of March, up from 3,034 a year earlier.
SOUTHEAST ASIA:
CONSTRUCTION IN ASIA-PACIFIC THRIVE AS BUILDINGS GO GREEN
Urbanization and the need for sustainable buildings will drive growth in the Asia-Pacific building construction market despite the soaring property prices, Malaysia’s PRNewswire reported published in June 2014. Green buildings that include smart features to ensure energy-efficiency are likely to attract the highest interest.
Market participants, however, must find ways to capitalize on this potential in an extremely competitive market, where buyers are more inclined to purchase buildings that are constructed by established property developers.
New analysis finds that the market earned revenues of US$495 billion in 2013 and estimates to reach US$750 billion in 2018. The Southeast Asia region will offer highest scope for market expansion due to its burgeoning population, increasing urbanization, and economic growth.
CHINA:
CHINA MULLS BIG CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS TO KEEP ECONOMY HEALTHY
China is planning further big infrastructure projects including highways, express train networks and new waterways to keep its economy growing at a stable rate, the cabinet said in June. The country has been buffeted by unsteady global demand and slowing domestic investment. China’s economic growth fell to an 18-month low of 7.4% in the first quarter. Analysts expect the cool-down to deepen slightly, with full-year growth seen at a 24-year low of 7.3%, according to Reuters. The dredging of new waterways would be accelerated to clear shipping bottlenecks, and more highways, airports and express train lines would help goods move faster to and from ports, the government said in an online statement after a weekly meeting. Oil and gas transportation and storage would also be improved. Authorities have already made a series of small changes to monetary policy to shore up activity, a process the government said it would continue to help specific areas of the economy.
THAILAND:
HIGH-SPEED TRAIN PROJECTS SET TO BE SHELVED
Thailand’s planned high-cost, high-speed trains will most certainly be shelved by the National Council for Peace and Order, which met in June to discuss the funding of new infrastructure projects, according to the Bangkok Post. A source told the paper that questions remain about the appropriateness of the projects for the country and their economic viability. The Yingluck Shinawatra administration planned to build four high-speed train lines from Bangkok to provincial areas as part of the 2-trillion-baht borrowing bill. But the plan was ruled unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court in March. Construction of the first phase of the four routes—Bangkok-Phitsanulok, Bangkok-Hua Hin, Bangkok-Rayong and Bangkok-Nakhon Ratchasima—was expected to be completed by 2019. Priority projects will likely be dual-track railways, motorways, highways in remote areas, ports, an upgrade of existing four-land roads and skytrain extensions.
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