A partnership led by by Chinese billionaire Wang Jianlin’s (王健林) Dalian Wanda Group Co (萬達集團) plans to invest more than 3 billion euros (US$3.3 billion) in a retail and leisure development project outside of Paris, taking on Walt Disney Co in the euro area’s second-largest economy.
EuropaCity is to be built 10km northeast of Paris. It will be the biggest single investment project in Europe to date, including a theme park, show stage, hotel, retail stores and conference centers, the company said in a statement.
The project, which spans more than 80 hectares, will also provide about 20,000 jobs during construction and 14,000 after it opens, according to the statement.
For Wanda, which runs theme parks across China, movie theater chains in the US and a soccer club in Spain, the move represents a renewed overseas push, underscoring Wang’s increasingly global ambitions.
The conglomerate agreed last month to buy Godzilla producer Legendary Entertainment for US$3.5 billion, paving the way for the tycoon to become the first Chinese person to control a Hollywood film company.
France-based shopping center developer Immochan is overseeing the project. Immochan is an arm of Groupe Auchan, a family-owned supermarket operator.
Wang is also interested in potentially buying Amaury Sport Organisation, a company that runs cycling’s Tour de France race, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
Wang has set his sights on beating Disney in the theme park business.
Last month, he told executives that visitor arrivals and revenue at Wanda’s tourism projects in Wuxi and Guangzhou will beat those of Disneyland in Shanghai and Hong Kong, respectively, according to a transcript of the speech posted on the company’s Web site.
Europacity might add to challenges facing Disneyland Paris, which needed a bailout in 2014 to upgrade its facilities and reverse a slump in attendance.
Already this year, Wanda announced a US$2.3 billion investment in three hospitals, the formation of a financial group and the signing a US$10 billion development deal in India, in addition to the Legendary acquisition. Wanda has said it is planning five major acquisitions this year — three of them overseas.
Wang’s investments in Europe include the Club Atletico de Madrid soccer team and Swiss marketing firm Infront Sports & Media AG.
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