PETALING JAYA: Following in the footsteps of Iskandar Waterfront Holdings Bhd (IWH), another Iskandar-linked entity may be mulling over a flotation.
Sources told StarBiz that Iskandar Investment Bhd (IIB) subsidiary,Medini Iskandar Malaysia Sdn Bhd (MIMSB) was mulling over a listing on Bursa Malaysia, on its strength as Iskandar Malaysia's urban township.
Although still at an early stage of planning, MIMSB's planned listing follows in the same model of IWH: As the township developer of massive property projects in a part of the country that is bound to see future growth thanks partly to its proximity to land starved Singapore.
Sources indicated that the potential listing could be worth up to US$2bil (RM6.09bil), taking into account the developments in the Medini Iskandar region. As one of IIB's catalytic projects, Medini is already proving to be a world-class development with the likes of international theme park Legoland under its belt.
IIB signed a RM750mil deal with Merlin Entertainments Group Ltd to set up the 30ha Legoland Malaysia, the first of its kind in Asia.
Legoland Park first opened in September last year, with 40 rides on display. Plans for a water park and a hotel are in the midst of construction and set for opening in 2013 and 2014.
Located in the heart of Nusajaya, Medini is surrounded by other developments such as EduCity, another of IIB's catalytic projects, serving as an international education hub.
The 243ha education hub will comprise universities and higher education institutes, academia-industry action and research and development centres, student accommodations, as well as recreational and sports facilities.
Educational institutions such as Marlborough College Malaysia, Netherlands Maritime Institute of Technology and University of Southampton Malaysia Campus are located in the area.
Also in the neighbourhood is Pinewood Iskandar Malaysia Studios, an integrated media production studio facility that has 100,000 sq ft of film stages, and 24,000 sq ft of TV studios, among other facilities. Pinewood Studios is also in the United Kingdom, Canada, Dominican Republic and Germany.
Also, a host of top name developers have bought land or entered into joint ventures with IIB for projects there.
These include WCT Bhd, Distinctive Group and Beijing-based Zhuoyuan Iskandar Sdn Bhd.
WCT is developing the high-rise residential project 1Medini, while Distinctive Group's projects are for a luxury condominium and a commercial centre. Zhuoyuan is developing a high-end residential condominium.
MIMSB is 75% owned by IIB while United World Infrastructure (UWI) of Dubai owns the balance 25%.
IIB is 60% owned by Khazanah Nasional Bhd. The Employees Provident Fund and Kumpulan Prasarana Rakyat Johor Bhd each hold an equal share of the remaining 40% in IIB.
IIB's role is to coordinate and invest in catalytic initiatives in the Iskandar Malaysia region. It is developing four clusters: education, leisure and tourism, healthcare and wellness, and creative development.
Medini Iskandar is a 902.4ha greenfield development which is designed as the new urban township of Iskandar Malaysia.
It has an expected gross development value (GDV) of US$20bil (RM61bil) over 15 to 20 years. The flagship development is expected to develop about 20% of the area by 2014, with a targeted population of 50,000.
The Medini township development began six years ago in 2007 with an initial capital investment of RM4.1bil. To date, RM1.84bil has been spent to complete the infrastructure works.
The master plan for the area is split into four distinct development clusters: Medini North, Medini Business, Medini Central and Medini South.
Recently, IIB president and chief executive officer Datuk Syed Mohamed Syed Ibrahim said he aimed to make Iskandar Malaysia an international metropolis by injecting more catalytic projects in the Iskandar region.
Source: The Star http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2013/1/28/business/12635848&sec=business
