A local consortium yesterday signed an agreement with the Taipei City Government to develop a multibillion-dollar complex near Taipei Railway Station, ending more than a decade of uncertainty over the project.
The consortium — comprised of contract computer maker Clevo Co (藍天電腦) and its property affiliate Hongwell Group (宏匯集團) — is to build two high-rise buildings featuring upscale office space, shops and a five-star hotel, Clevo-Hongwell consortium head Kent Hsu (許崑泰) said at a signing ceremony in Taipei.
“It feels like being admitted to college after an outright rejection,” Hsu told reporters.
Photo: CNA
The consortium in December last year lost a bidding race to a foreign group led by Hong Kong-based Nan Hai Development Ltd (南海發展) and Malaysian property developer Malton Berhad by NT$15 billion (US$496.52 million at the current exchange rate).
However, the Ministry of Economic Affairs’ Investment Commission in June disqualified the winners, citing national security concerns.
The city government had tried, unsuccessfully, to find a developer for the project in five rounds of bidding spanning 13 years.
The project would cost NT$60.6 billion, with support from Hsu’s own capital, bank loans and government funds, the tech tycoon-turned developer said.
The mixed-used complex would feature two buildings of 56 and 76 stories intended to renew the area, with easy access to the railway and High-Speed Rail stations, as well as the Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system, the airport MRT Line and bus routes, the consortium said.
The towers would have 160,000 ping (528,926m2) of floor space, half of which would be set aside for grade-A office space, while shops would cover 30 percent and hotel rooms would occupy 10,000 ping, Hsu said, adding that there would also be performance halls.
The consortium plans to operate the shopping mall itself and is in talks with international hospitality brands on potential collaboration, he said.
“We will team up with whichever partner can generate the highest return,” Hsu said.
The consortium has promised landlords — the city government and other private owners — monthly rent of NT$2,500 per ping, which means that it needs to charge higher rates to turn a profit after the complex starts operations in 2027, Hsu said.
Local property funds have flowed to office buildings development due to a lack of new products on the horizon, he said, adding that the trend could reverse the landscape and create oversupply in a few years.
The consortium is prepared, as it deems the project a long-term investment that might not generate a profit in the first 10 years of operations, he said.
It would take two years for the venture to clear urban renewal reviews and another four to five years for construction and use license applications, he added.
Greek tourism student Katerina quit within a month of starting work at a five-star hotel in Halkidiki, one of the country’s top destinations, because she said conditions were so dire. Beyond the bad pay, the 22-year-old said that her working and living conditions were “miserable and unacceptable.” Millions holiday in Greece every year, but its vital tourism industry is finding it harder and harder to recruit Greeks to look after them. “I was asked to work in any department of the hotel where there was a need, from service to cleaning,” said Katerina, a tourism and marketing student, who would
i Gasoline and diesel prices at fuel stations are this week to rise NT$0.1 per liter, as tensions in the Middle East pushed crude oil prices higher last week, CPC Corp, Taiwan (台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) said yesterday. International crude oil prices last week rose for the third consecutive week due to an escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, as the market is concerned that the situation in the Middle East might affect crude oil supply, CPC and Formosa said in separate statements. Front-month Brent crude oil futures — the international oil benchmark — rose 3.75 percent to settle at US$77.01
As they zigzagged from one machine to another in the searing African sun, the workers were covered in black soot. However, the charcoal they were making is known as “green,” and backers hope it can save impoverished Chad from rampant deforestation. Chad, a vast, landlocked country of 19 million people perched at the crossroads of north and central Africa, is steadily turning to desert. It has lost more than 90 percent of its forest cover since the 1970s, hit by climate change and overexploitation of trees for household uses such as cooking, officials say. “Green charcoal” aims to protect what
NEW BEGINNING: The merger would be named TS Financial Holding Co and would become Taiwan’s fourth-largest financial holding company by total assets The merger of Taishin Financial Holding Co (台新金控) and Shin Kong Financial Holding Co (新光金控) is set to be finalized on July 24, Taishin Financial Chairman Thomas Wu (吳東亮) said yesterday. Speaking at the company’s annual general meeting in Taipei, Wu said that the merged entity would be named TS Financial Holding Co (台新新光金控) and would become the fourth-largest financial holding company in Taiwan by total assets. The two companies first announced the merger in August last year, and after receiving approval from shareholders a month later, the Fair Trade Commission in January, and the Financial Supervisory Commission in March, the merger
RSS